The Toronto Raptors acquired small forward James Johnson from the Chicago Bulls on Tuesday in exchange for the Miami HEAT's 2011 first-round draft pick that the Raptors picked up this past summer as part of the Chris Bosh sign and trade deal with Miami.
Johnson was taken with the sixteenth pick of the 2009 draft by the Bulls after two seasons with Wake Forest. In college, Johnson averaged an impressive 14.8 points, 8.3 rebounds, 1.4 steals, and 1.4 blocks in about 30 minutes a game. At a legitimate 6' 8" tall and 257 lbs, Johnson also sports a seven-foot wingspan and has a 35" maximum vertical leap.

"James Johnson is a strong, athletic and versatile small forward that we have had our eye on dating back to the 2009 NBA Draft," said Raptors President and General Manager Bryan Colangelo.

Johnson had trouble getting minutes on the Bulls in his rookie season and averaged 3.9 points and 1.9 rebounds in 11.6 minutes over 65 games and a partially-torn plantar fasciitis in his right foot caused him to miss five games over the season's final couple of weeks.

This season has been even tougher as the Bulls revamped roster left little time for Johnson. A largely forgotten man, Johnson has only played in two games for the Bulls since Christmas.

The 24-year-old Johnson does fill both an immediate and possibly a long-term need on the Raptors. Since Linas Kleiza was lost for the season due to injury, the Raptors have found themselves short-handed at the small forward position and lacking the physical presence with which to guard larger wing players. Johnson will get the chance denied to him in Chicago this year to show what he is capable of in Toronto.