Sources: Johnson likely to stay a Hawk

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The Atlanta Hawks have offered free agent Joe Johnson a maximum six-year contract worth $119 million, and sources told ESPN The Magazine's Chris Broussard that Johnson is all but sure to accept.

Johnson

The Hawks and Johnson's representatives met Thursday morning in Los Angeles. Since Johnson cannot sign until July 8, he'll give other teams the courtesy of hearing them out. But unless a team completely blows him away, Johnson will take the Hawks' offer, the sources said.

Johnson met with the New York Knicks and Miami Heat after free agency opened Wednesday.

"We met with the Hawks and Knicks [on Wednesday] night and have heard a number of other teams with significant interest in Joe," Johnson's agent, Arn Tellem, said Thursday. "At this point, Joe has many great options to choose from. We plan to meet with the Hawks again [Thursday] to discuss the details of their offer and we hope to make a decision in the near future."

Armed with third-party intelligence that LeBron James considers Johnson a desirable potential teammate, the Knicks booked a flight to meet Johnson before traveling to Cleveland to meet with James on Thursday.

Tellem told The Associated Press on Wednesday night that Johnson has not been involved in any meetings with other free agents.

Johnson led the Hawks in scoring at 21.3 points per game.

Information from ESPN The Magazine's Chris Broussard and Ric Bucher, ESPNNewYork.com's Ian O'Connor and The Associated Press was used in this report.

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