Wes Johnson raised his right hand in appreciation as he exited the court for the final time Friday. With 23.9 seconds left in the third quarter, the Carrier Dome crowd rose to its feet to pay homage to one of its favorite sons making his triumphant return less than a year after leading Syracuse to its second outright Big East title in program history.

And though Johnson, who was taken by Minnesota with the No. 4 overall pick in the 2010 NBA Draft in June, played just 21 minutes, the night was nostalgic. Showing up to catch a glimpse of Johnson one last time were 11,747 fans, as his Timberwolves beat the Detroit Pistons 99-88 Friday.  

‘I was tired, a lot of adrenaline going,’ Johnson said. ‘It was a lot different from college, when the student section was crazy. Still, seeing the ‘S’ on the floor brought back a lot of memories.’

With those memories still fresh after leading the Orange to a No. 1 ranking and earning 2010 Big East Player of the Year honors, Johnson perhaps let his emotions get the best of him. He finished the game with just four points on 2-of-6 shooting to go along with three assists and two steals on the night.

‘I think Wes was a little nervous coming home,’ Timberwolves coach Kurt Rambis said. ‘He wanted to do really well. A lot of the times, he forgot what we were supposed to do out there, but that’s youth. He’s still learning. In shootaround, I saw him do things athletically I had never seen him do, so I know he was fired up.’

It was the first time Johnson and two other Syracuse stars — Minnesota teammates Jonny Flynn and Jason Hart — have returned to the Dome for a game since turning pro. Flynn sat out with an injured hip, and Hart played six minutes in the fourth quarter.

This year’s crowd was significantly less than the 22,115 that showed up to see Carmelo Anthony and the Denver Nuggets take on the Phoenix Suns in an NBA preseason game two years ago. But despite that, the support for Johnson was heard loud and clear from those who did show.

Johnson was the last player to be introduced to the crowd prior to the game, setting off a standing ovation and one of the loudest moments of the night. As he made his way through the line of teammates, Johnson was treated to hugs and high fives as the crowd began to ignite.

‘It’s always good to come back to what I like to call ‘home,” Flynn said, sitting in his old SU locker after the game. ‘It’s great seeing all the fans and feeling their support. It just never gets old.’

The crowd collectively cheered the three returning SU stars while showing its discontent for the five former Connecticut and Georgetown players on the Detroit roster. Pistons forward Greg Monroe, who defeated the Orange in the Big East tournament in March, couldn’t help but smile as the boos came pouring down.

Adding to the nostalgic feel was the string of former SU legends in the house, making it a reunion of sorts. Among those in attendance were Pearl Washington, Derrick Coleman, Lawrence Moten, Rafael Addison, Gerry McNamara and Dave Bing, now the mayor of Detroit. The group celebrated Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim’s 800th coaching victory at halftime, a feat Boeheim accomplished at the beginning of last season.

‘Having so many guys come back this weekend, that was great,’ Flynn said. ‘This was the first time I ever sat the bench for an entire game here, but aside from that, we couldn’t have asked for anything more.’

As the final seconds ticked off the clock, Johnson and Flynn began signing autographs for the Syracuse faithful that lined the tunnel into the locker room. Johnson signed a ball for the group of ball boys decked out in NBA-replica ‘Johnson’ and ‘Flynn’ Minnesota jerseys before disappearing into the crowd.

For one night at the Dome, it wasn’t about what went on during the game.

‘Just being back in the Carrier Dome, Jonny and I looked at each other like, ‘This is crazy.’ I got chills,’ Johnson said. ‘It was good seeing a lot of the faces I usually saw before games. I didn’t have to break that ritual. It was good to see them come out.’

aljohn@syr.edu

Published on October 15, 2010 at 12:00 pm