Joe Johnson says that he did not request a trade from the Hawks

Joe Johnson told reporters on Thursday that he did not ask the Hawks to trade him this past off season but he was glad that he landed in Brooklyn.

"Everybody thinks I made this trade," the Nets' shooting guard said. "I had nothing to do with it.

"Every time I run into somebody when I'm in Atlanta, they ask me, ‘Why did you leave?'

I didn't have nothing to do with it. I'm just glad that I came to a great organization and a team who wants to win."

Johnson signed a max contract with the Hawks in 2010 and one of the first moves made by new general manager Danny Ferry this summer was to package Johnson to Brooklyn for a handful of players none of which had contracts beyond this season. In doing so, Ferry significantly improved the team's flexibility for the near future.

Johnson really had no reason to request a trade from Atlanta in the first place. He was well paid and one of the main options for a playoff team which is certainly not the worst position a player can be in.