OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) Avery Johnson sits forward in his seat on the Golden State sideline, his right elbow planted firmly on his thigh and his right hand in a fist on his chin. He is concentrating harder than most of his teammates. He grimaces, then later he hops up and cheers.

The 5-foot-11 guard, who is in his 16th NBA season, seldom plays for the Warriors. When he does, it's only for a few minutes. Still, he is one of the most valuable members of a franchise that needs all the veteran leadership it can get.

``All the coaches like to pick his brain on little things,'' second-year Warriors coach Eric Musselman said. ``He's got a great command of knowing the strengths and weaknesses of his teammates.''

With his vast experience and strong communication skills, Johnson has become a mentor for his teammates in addition to helping out the coaching staff. He's a captain and they all say he'll make a great coach _ it's just a matter of when he decides to make the switch.

``I'm not sure whether I'm in the stretch but I'm definitely in the last lap, and I'm getting close to the stretch,'' Johnson said.

Whatever Johnson decides to do, his former coach at Southern University has no doubt he'll be great at it.

``He'll make a fine anything. I used to tell my wife, 'This is the next Martin Luther King, right here,''' said Ben Jobe, who coached Johnson two years at Southern. ``He's a God-sent person and he's always been. He could be president of the United States, president of a corporation or president of the NBA. Avery is by far the best player I've ever coached. He is by far the smartest player I've ever coached.''

Johnson, 38, has been a natural leader all along _ since he was a child on the playground.

``From about 12 years old,'' he said. ``I just kind of knew it. My dad kind of helped me with it. He said, 'You know you're a leader. You just have something in you that very few people have.' He used to always tell me, 'Boy, you can talk.'''

And boy can he.

He's friendly with fans before games, his distinct voice resonating through the crowd. He's active in the community.

Johnson's younger sister, Andrea Johnson, recalls how even during pickup basketball ``everybody gravitated to him.''

``As long as I can remember, he was always the smallest person, but he had the biggest heart,'' said Andrea, who works for his company, Avery Johnson Operations in New Orleans. ``Everybody always talked to Avery because he had a wonderful personality.''

As a player, Johnson averaged double figures in scoring in five straight seasons, starting in 1993-94 during his first stint with Golden State, which hasn't been back to the playoffs in the nine years since. His best season came the following year in San Antonio, where he averaged 13.4 points and 8.2 assists.

He returned to the Warriors last August in a nine-player trade that also brought Nick Van Exel to Oakland and sent forward Antawn Jamison to Dallas. Johnson is a calming influence on Van Exel, known for his occasional outbursts.

Last May, Johnson delivered a motivational speech to the Mavericks before they beat the Portland Trail Blazers in Game 7 of their first-round playoff series. The word he used most was ``will,'' underlining it four times on a message board.

``My son, Avery Jr., is the same way, and he's 8,'' Johnson said. ``He can always rally people and gather kids. He's always the center. He's the leader. You know it early.''

Jobe would have preferred to see his star player take a different path than basketball after college _ even though Johnson led the NCAA in assists as a junior and senior and was the Southwestern Athletic Conference player of the year both seasons.

``I hoped he wouldn't pursue the NBA. He's too good for that kind of profession,'' Jobe said. ``In the world, we need leaders bad. I'd hoped he'd pursue something big.''

Johnson has learned something from every coach he's played for _ he can't remember just how many that is, but he thinks it's around 11.

``In this order, I would say Bernie Bickerstaff because he's been pretty much like my NBA father. He brought me into the league,'' Johnson said. ``I've got to say Gregg Popovich because I've had my most success with him. I think out of any coach in the NBA after I got in the NBA, he believed in me the most. I would put Don Nelson up there also. Don was great to me for a year and a half in Dallas and even when I came here to the Warriors 10 years ago.''

Nelson says Johnson has a standing invitation to join his staff. ``I don't think I'd be the only team,'' he added.

But Johnson isn't planning to move to the sidelines just yet.

``I'm just keeping everything open and enjoying today,'' he said. ``I don't really want to be interested in timelines, five years from now, two years, three years from now. Today is the only thing that you have.''