No he wasn't.
He became a full time fighter, the first time he fought for the belt against Dominick Cruz..That was his first time as a full time fighter.
https://lasvegassun.com/news/2014/jun/12/demetrious-johnson-working-mans-ufc-champion/
It's easy to get what I mean....He beat MM, early on, when he wasn't at full potential....Plenty of great fighters have lost to meh fighters, early on and they arn't considered legends.
Sorry but Brad Pickett has never been an amazing fighter, or notable enough.
Im a true fight fan, you're just some hipster who claims that Picket is a caliber fighter...He ain't.