Tyler Johnson on $50M Heat deal, 'I threw up a couple of times when I heard the number'

So what was Tyler Johnson's reaction when he heard he was going to receive a four-year, $50 million contract?

"I threw up a couple of times when I heard the number go out there. I was in shock. I even lost a little bit of weight, because just the anxiety of going through that whole process and not knowing where I was going to be," the Miami Heat guard said Monday during a team-sponsored water-safety event at Bucky Dent Water Park.

Actually, Johnson thought he wouldn't be anywhere near the blazing South Florida heat he dealt with Monday, figuring the Heat would decline to match that exorbitant offer sheet extended by the Brooklyn Nets to the restricted free agent.

And then the Heat's free-agency negotiations with Dwyane Wade collapsed. And then Heat owner Micky Arison told Heat President Pat Riley that he wasn't about to allow another team poach the 24-year-old combo guard the team had worked so hard to develop.

"I was like almost 100 percent sure I was going to end up in Brooklyn," Johnson said Monday. "But, yeah, it's an incredible feeling. And I'm excited to get back to work."

The whirlwind was so absolute that Johnson said he never had a chance to reset the structure of his contract that now stands so onerous to the Heat, with $19 million salaries in each of the last two years. By the time the Heat suggested something closer to a $12.5 million split in each of the four years, Johnson said he already had given his word to the Nets to sign the offer sheet as originally drafted.

"It was very late in the process," he said. "I had already kind of come to the assumption that everything was going to play out the way it didn't, really, like they were going to re-sign Dwyane and everything. I think that kind of threw a wrench in everything. It was only a matter of an hour and a half where I had to make the decision of either signing an offer sheet that I kind of committed to or just not signing and restructure a new deal.

"Obviously I opted to sign it and keep the commitment I made to Brooklyn. And Miami still showed how much they wanted me to be a part of their team by matching."

Johnson said he never approached his negotiation with an intention of replacing Wade, saying Monday of Wade being gone, "It doesn't make any sense."

"Obviously he was a great leader and mentor, the best player in franchise history," Johnson said. "So it's tough to lose a guy like Dwyane. You can't really make that up in one season. So I think it's going to be a collective group of guys who have to kind of pick up the weight that he was able to bring to the city."

While Johnson has emerged as the latest of the Heat's success stories with undrafted players, developing a 3-point shot to go with his defensive tenacity, there had been ongoing concerns about shoulder issues that had been present for years, with surgery required this past season.

Being healthy, more than the contract, is what Johnson said will motivate him to show his total worth.

"It's still the same game, and I get a chance to play healthy," he said of moving up from a minimum-scale contract. "So I'm not really worried about any pressure. I mean, when I'm healthy I feel like that's when I have my best opportunity to grow and play my best basketball. So I'm looking forward to showing everybody what I can do."

With Wade gone, Johnson said he embraces the opportunity to start something fresh alongside young teammates Josh Richardson, Briante Weber, Hassan Whiteside and Justise Winslow.

"It's a great feeling to know that you're wanted somewhere," he said of the Heat matching the Nets' offer. "They showed me how much they wanted me to be a part of the organization by matching. It wasn't an easy process for me, and I know it wasn't an easy process for them. I know there was a lot of changeover going on.

"But the ability to continue to grow with Josh and Briante, Hassan and Justise, those young guys, it's a great opportunity."