Rockets' Joe Johnson will play against former team for first time when moved midseason

Houston Rockets guard Joe Johnson (7) enters the game for the first time as the Houston Rockets take on the Sacramento Kings at the Toyota Center Wednesday, Feb. 14, 2018 in Houston. (Michael Ciaglo / Houston Chronicle)

SALT LAKE CITY – In 17 NBA seasons, Joe Johnson has collected nearly every regular-season experience life in the league can offer. He has been traded four times. He has signed free agent contracts large and small. He has negotiated buyouts to depart sinking teams and join contenders.

With six former teams on the road to Houston, when Johnson faced the Jazz on Monday, he did something he never had in his career, playing with and against a team in the same season.

Johnson had twice before changed teams during the season. As a Celtics rookie, he was traded to the Suns at the 2001-02 deadline, the move that helped establish him as a star. As a Nets veteran, he agreed to a buyout and signed with the Heat two years ago. But he did not play against the Celtics in the season they traded him. He did not play against the Nets after signing with the Heat.

By the time he played against former teams in the season after moving on in the off-seasons, they had changed greatly.

When Johnson faced the Jazz on Monday, it was less than three weeks since he played for them. Only Jae Crowder, acquired from the Cavaliers in the three-team deal that sent Johnson to Sacramento and an immediate buyout, has joined the Jazz since Johnson left them.