James JohnsonPF | Pacers

James Johnson expected to exercise optionJune 28, 2020 | 10:17 AM

James Johnson is fully expected to exercise his $16M player option for the 2020-21 season, according to Jon Krawczynski of The Athletic. Analysis: The Wolves are about as likely to win the championship as Johnson is to decline the option, so this is obviously a no-brainer. Johnson did have a strong finish to the season in the wake of Karl-Anthony Towns' injuries, averaging 12.0 points, 4.7 rebounds, 3.8 assists, 1.4 steals and 1.4 blocks while logging a ton of minutes as a small-ball center. He'll be a veteran presence on the Wolves next season as they currently have the youngest roster in the league, but it's far too early to predict what kind of role he will have. The odds of him being a rotation player should be pretty good though after becoming a favorite of head coach Ryan Saunders.