Earvin “Magic” Johnson Jr. is an American former pro basketball player and former director of NBA Basketball operations at the Los Angeles Lakers. Johnson spent 13 seasons with the Lakers. He was honored in 1996 as one of the 50 greatest players in NBA history.
He was a member of the 1992 United States national Olympic basketball team (“The Dream Team”) which won the 1992 Olympic medal. Five NBA Championships, Three NBA MVP Awards, nine NBA Finals appearances, twelve All-Star games, and ten All-NBA First Team nominations are just a few of Magic’s accolades in the league. It also has him leading all-time leaders of the NBA in the average assists per game to 11.1.
Magic Johnson – Early Life
Earvin “Magic” Johnson was born In Lansing Michigan to a family with six other siblings, as well as three half-siblings from his father’s previous marriage. The situation was tough, but his father managed to work two jobs to keep the income stable. Ever since he was a child, Johnson proved to be incredibly talented when it came to basketball and decided to dedicate his whole life to that sport.
Johnson was nicknamed Magic when as a 15-year-old sophomore. He was playing for the high school in Everett when he compiled a triple-double of 36 points, 16 assists and 16 rebounds. Magic Johnson led his High School squad to 27–1 win-loss record while averaging 16.8 rebounds per game and 26.8 points.
He dedicated the championship win to his best friend Reggie Chastine, who died the year before in a crash. In 1977 he was the best high school basketball player to emerge from Michigan high school and was also included on the McDonald’s All-American team.
Magic Johnson – College Career
He went to East Lansing’s Michigan State University since it was near his home. In his first year, he averaged 17.0 points, 7.9 rebounds, and 7.4 assists for the Spartans, who won the Big Ten championship with a 25-5 record.
He led Michigan to the 1979 NCAA title as a sophomore, defeating Indiana State Spartans with the star Larry Bird in one of the most hyped NCAA championship games ever played. That was the start of the now-legendary relationship between the two players, which would go on to save the NBA at one point. The rivalry was constantly fueled by racial inequalities and the fact that basketball was a predominantly black sport in the USA at the time.
Magic Johnson – NBA Career
Magic was more than a revolutionary player, who was the tallest point guard in NBA history when he debuted. Even the most casual basketball enthusiast was aware of his tremendous talent.
Magic Johnson decided to skip his last two years with the intention of joining the 1979 draft in the NBA. Utah’s team was set to pick first in the draft, but they had given the first-round selection to the Lakers three years prior as requital for Gail Goodrich‘s signing. As a result, Johnson was chosen first overall by the Los Angeles Lakers, where he played point guard for the following 13 seasons.
Magic Johnson – Los Angeles Lakers
Even though Johnson had a fabulous rookie season, Larry Bird of the Boston Celtics won the Rookie of the Year Award. The championship, on the other hand, went to Los Angeles. With a 60-22 record, the Lakers dominated the Western Conference and became just the second-best team in NBA history with that record. Again, the feud between the two players was deepened.
After McKinney was badly injured in a bicycle accident 14 games into the campaign, Westhead replaced him as head coach. During his first season with the Los Angeles Lakers, he produced numbers comparable to those he posted at Michigan State (18.0 points per game, 7.7 rebounds, 7.3 assists). He became the first rookie to be a part of an NBA All-Star Game since Elvin Hayes 11 years before.
The Lakers’ squad was right after a major transformation, with a new head coach Jack McKinney, seven new players, as well as owner, Jerry Buss. With one of the country’s most electrifying college players donning a Lakers jersey, Buss hoped that the usually reserved Forum fans would get excited. This marked the birth of the famous “Showtime” Los Angeles Lakers squad.
At his debut, Johnson showed the enthusiasm he would exhibit in every game throughout his career. After Abdul-Jabbar hit a last-second shot to beat San Diego’s Clippers, Johnson went crazy, hugging and high-fiving everybody on the team.
With this pace, most experts believed that the youngster would suffer a burnout soon. In fact, Abdul-Jabbar had to urge the young player to take a break because there was still an entire season left to play, save the playoffs.
His amazing passing abilities were one of the features that amazed people the most about Johnson’s game. He dazzled crowds and perplexed opponents with no-look throws off the bench. “Unorthodox” would be an underappreciation of his playing style. When defenders thought he was going to pass, he shot. When they anticipated him to shoot, he passed. He was unpredictable to a tremendous degree.
But it wasn’t only his playing that was exceptional. He was in immense love with basketball. Johnson always maintained a positive attitude and displayed unworldly enthusiasm. He behaved almost like a child when it came to playing.
Johnson’s all-around game prompted the creation of the phrase “triple-double” to describe a player’s performance, although Robertson should be credited as the first person to record ten or more points in three statistical categories in a single game. Nobody had thought of the term “triple double” in the 1960s, which is a shame for Robertson.
Magic Johnson was known for his two personalities. One was Earvin—a loving, kind, and wonderful person. The other was Magic—one of the fiercest competitors who was totally engulfed with the game. That is the character he was showing when doing anything concerning the love of his life. Johnson had a gratitude-first approach. He was making a lot of money and was known globally, but the main reason he kept playing was that it made him happy.
Magic Johnson – NBA Finals MVP Award
Johnson’s magical show in Game 6 of the NBA Finals of 1980, which sealed the series for the Lakers, was legendary. Abdul-Jabbar had a severely sprained ankle after sustaining 40 points in the previous game. The Lakers had an option to force a final as they were up 3-2 on the Sixers’ floor.
That’s when the magic happened. Magic Johnson, a rookie, entered the court and blew everybody’s minds. Keep in mind that it was his first year playing professionally and he got to finals. Instead of crumbling under the enormous pressure, Johnson was in a trance. The Los Angeles Lakers won the match as well as the championship, with Magic scoring 42 points, grabbing 15 rebounds, 7 assists, and 3 interceptions. He even won the MVP award for the finals, which was a first for a rookie. It became apparent that, when Johnson wanted to win (which was basically every match), he would do everything in his power to do so.
The following season was not much better for Magic Johnson or the Lakers. Johnson’s left knee was crushed beneath Tom Burleson’s of Atlanta Hawks body, causing him to be absent in 45 games due to damaged cartilage, in the opening month.
He returned in for his team’s best-of-three playoff matchup with Houston’s squad. Johnson only scored 2 out of 13 attempts from the field. He also missed an airball with four seconds remaining in the third game, allowing the Rockets to win 89-86, winning the series.
The next season saw the Lakers almost mirroring their performance from two years back. They won the finals against the 76ers 4-2 and Johnson won the MVP.
Magic Johnson – Westhead Fired
While victorious, that season was unpleasant for Johnson at one point. Westhead had an idea to try a different setup that would impair Magic Johnson’s impact on the game. Getting angry (and rightfully so!), Johnson had an outburst in the locker room and threatened to leave the team, expressing his willingness for a trade to a different team.
Westhead was let go the day after and was replaced with Pat Riley, the assistant coach. Johnson’s two following years were great. Still, the Lakers had suffered as a team with injuries of three key players—Bob McAdoo, Worthy, and Norm Nixon. This has caused the Lakers to lose the finals in 1983 when facing the 76ers (again).
Magic’s Low Point
1984 was probably the lowest point of Magic. Gone was Nixon and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar has gotten old. Even though they reached the finals, the Lakers were defeated in seven games. Unfortunately, Johnson “helped” with the defeat by making key mistakes in games two, four, and seven.
The subsequent four years saw the Lakers rebounding from a slump. They won three out of four championship rings, with Johnson performing at his peak.
In 1986-87, Johnson finally won the MVP award. His rivalry with Larry Bird was getting deeper and deeper at the time due to the political climate. Bird already had three MVPs, which was irritating for Magic. Still, by 1990, Johnson won two more, tying with Bird.
Magic Johnson – Getting out of a Slump
On top of that, Johnson replaced Abdul-Jabbar as team captain. The legendary center instructed his pupil the sky-hook technique during practice. Magic Johnson grasped his own variant of the play, later utilizing it to score the final goal in Game 4 at Madison Square Garden, which ended 107-106. He led them to the second NBA Finals triumph for the Lakers versus the Celts.
Next year, the Lakers were also victorious, defeating the Pistons during a beast of a series with seven games. That was the first time in 20 years that a team had won the NBA championship back-to-back. While they won the division titles in the coming two seasons, they hadn’t taken the ring home.
With Abdul-Jabbar’s career nearing an end and Magic Johnson injuring his hamstring, the Lakers suffered a defeat by the Detroit Pistons in 1989. The following year was even worse, with the Lakers getting eliminated in the conference semifinals by Phoenix Suns.
The Lakers rebounded again next year and finished the season with a 58-24 score, as well as reached the finals. Still, it was Michael Jordan’s prime, and so they lost the series to Chicago Bulls.
Magic Johnson – HIV Announcement
1991 marked an important event both in Magic Johnson’s career and for the general public overall. The legendary player announced that he came down with HIV. Immediately, rumors began to spread that Magic Johnson was a homo- or bisexual, but they were dispelled by him. He decided to raise awareness of the illness and helped to change the view of HIV as only a threat to homosexuals when the disease could affect heterosexuals just as much. Johnson announced that he would be retiring, effective immediately.
To help with the HIV situation, Johnson created his foundation and became an advocate of safe sex and awareness.
Johnson stopped playing in the next regular season but made an appearance in the All-Star match, in which he earned the MVP award, as well as played in the 1992 Olympic’s dream team.
Magic Johnson – Other Ventures of Magic Johnson
In 1993-94, he became the coach for the Lakers, but only for the last 16 games of the season. Unfortunately, he wasn’t as successful as a player. The LA Lakers ended the season with a ten-game losing streak for a record of 5-11 under Johnson.
He didn’t like the role, though, as he always had an entrepreneurial mind. Johnson was keen on opening multiple businesses. For instance, he funded a movie theater venture (Magic Johnson Theaters) on a national scale as part of his Magic Johnson Enterprises. Magic Johnson wasn’t done with basketball, either. He composed a team of former professional players and went on to entertain people and popularize basketball in Australia and Asia.
Magic Johnson made a final comeback for the 1995-1996 season, where he played in the last 32 matches of the campaign. In the games Johnson played, they had a record of 22-10. However, when they got eliminated in the playoffs to Houston, he retired again, this time for good.
Johnson’s final record was 17,707 points with 19.5 points per game, 6,559 rebounds, and 1,724 steals.
Magic and Mark R. Walter in 2014, acquired with the LA Sparks. The team managed to win the ring in 2016, but they were defeated in the 2017 finals. Additionally, they got to the playoffs each year ever since Magic Johnson became a part of the Sparks.
February 21, 2017, marked the day the LA Lakers took Magic Johnson as their basketball operations president. The Lakers’ last match of the season, which aired on ESPN on Jan. 22 at 1 p.m., was a surprise for everyone when Magic Johnson unexpectedly resigned from his position as team president. Even though he finished working for the LA Lakers, Magic Johnson has several successful enterprises and majority ownership in the Los Angeles Dodgers as well as LAFC to his credit.
How many rings does Magic Johnson have as owner?
Johnson has 10 NBA championships, five from his playing career and five as a minority-owner of the Lakers.
How much was Magic Johnson worth in 2021?
Magic Johnson’s total net worth was around $620 Million in 2021.
Why is Johnson called Magic?
The “Magic” in Earvin “Magic” Johnson’s name came from a reporter who saw him play and needed a nickname for the impressive young player.
