The Atlanta Hawks recently offered a four year $60 million contract extension to their All Star and Captain Joe Johnson. Unfortunately for the Hawks, Johnson declined the offer and opted to play out his final year and then enter the free agent market. This leaves Atlanta urgently hoping that this season will be the season for the team. Joe Johnson is a three time All Star and is both the Captain and leading scorer on the team. Johnson will be among an elite group of free agents during this coming off-season, which include such players as Dwyane Wade, and LeBron James. While he has opted for free agency at the end of the season, Johnson says that he is not thinking about the end of the season, but about now. He is focused on helping the team this season and achieving the Central Division title. Only time will tell if the Hawks are ready to join the Eastern Conference's big teams as they start off their pre-season schedule tonight.