Cavs among teams pursuing Joe Johnson

Let the pursuit of Joe Johnson race begin.

According to ESPN's Marc Stein, Johnson and the Brooklyn Nets have begun buyout negotiations that would make him a free agent. Stein also reports that the Cavs are among a number of playoff teams already lining up to pursue Johson. Per Stein, the teams other than the Cavs interested in signing Johnson are the Oklahoma City Thunder, Toronto Raptors, Boston Celtics, Miami Heat, Houston Rockets and the Atlanta Hawks.

The Cavs have been linked to Johnson a few times of late, although they didn't always think he'd leave the Nets. Even if he's not the same player he was a few years ago, he'd be a nice get for the Cavs. Iman Shumpert is having a down year and he's been hurt of late. And with teams like Toronto and Oklahoma City now interested, signing Johnson would come with the added bonus of keeping him away from a competitor.

It isn't known yet when Johnson will complete his buyout, but the moment it happens, expect the Cavs to chase Johnson hard in hopes of filling one of their two empty roster spots.