Toros spokeswoman Perri Travillion said she was speaking with Johnson on the sidewalk outside the Convention Center when he collapsed. Johnson was joking about getting a parking ticket.
"We were laughing," said Travillion. "He just collapsed."
Travillion called 911, but Johnson never regained consciousness. According to Travillion, Johnson did not appear to overexert himself at practice and did not complain of any discomfort before collapsing.
As the news spread around the NBA, former teammates and opponents were shocked and saddened. Johnson leaves his wife, Donna, and three children -- sons Dwayne and Daniel, and daughter Denise -- as well as an extended NBA family that remembers the defensive intensity, toughness, and ability to come through in the clutch that he exhibited during a 14-year career spent with Seattle, Phoenix, and Boston. During the playoffs, Johnson hounded Los Angeles Lakers star Magic Johnson on defense and most famously scored the winning layup for the Celtics in Game 5 of the 1987 Eastern Conference finals against the Detroit Pistons after Larry Bird stole Isiah Thomas's inbounds pass.
"I hate to lose," Johnson once said. "I accept it when it comes, but I still hate it. That's the way I am."
That mind-set, in part, led Bird to call Johnson the best teammate he ever had. It was a compliment that captured what Johnson meant to the Celtics far better than the 14.1 points and five assists per game he averaged during his career. At the time of his retirement after the 1989-90 season, he was the 11th player in NBA history to score 15,000 points and record 5,000 assists. He was also a six-time member of the All-Defensive first team and one time member of the All-NBA first team. Many former teammates believe Johnson should have been elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame.
"He was one of the most underrated players in the history of the game, in my opinion, and one of the greatest Celtic acquisitions of all time," said Danny Ainge, who played alongside Johnson in the Celtics' backcourt for six seasons. "DJ was a free spirit and a fun personality who loved to laugh and play the game."
