From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Jump to: navigation, search

"Magic" JohnsonEarvin "Magic" Johnson, Jr. (born August 14, 1959 in Lansing, Michigan) is a 6' 9" (2.06 m) former American professional basketball star who played for the Los Angeles Lakers during the 1980s and early 1990s. Playing point guard, he led the Lakers to five NBA championships (1980, 1982, 1985, 1987, and 1988), as well as four other NBA Finals appearances. He also led Michigan State University to the NCAA title in 1979 against arch-rival Larry Bird's Indiana State University. Johnson is also the only NBA rookie to win the NBA Finals MVP Award. He is one of only four players to win NCAA and NBA championships in consecutive years.

He was named to the NBA All-Star team 12 times and was named league MVP three times, in 1987, 1989, and 1990. He was named to the NBA's First-Team nine times and the Second Team once. He is widely considered to be the best point guard who ever played the game.

Magic Johnson had a positive impact at every level of competition. He enjoyed championship seasons in high school, college, professional basketball and was a key member of the 1992 gold-medal winning Olympic basketball team (the so-called "Dream Team").

Johnson earned the nickname "Magic" at Everett High School in Lansing from a local sports writer named Fred Stabley Jr., both for his flamboyant passing style and winning ways. In different periods of his career, he led the league in assists and steals. He led the Lakers in scoring three times (1987, 1989, and 1990) and in rebounding twice (1982 and1983). Although he and Bird eventually became the best of friends off the court, they revived the heated Lakers-Celtics Rivalry and drew millions of new fans to the NBA.

The greatest game of Johnson's career arguably came in his rookie season: May 16, 1980, in Game 6 of the NBA Finals at Philadelphia. Filling in for the injured Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Magic started the game at center and eventually played every position on the floor in a dominating performance. Scoring a game-high 42 points and grabbing a game-high 15 rebounds, he led the Lakers to the NBA crown, stunning Julius Erving a.k.a. "Dr. J", the Philadelphia 76ers, and a national television audience who came to understand the moniker "Magic".

On the court

High school and college
From his first days playing the game as a high school All-American in his hometowm of Lansing, Johnson was a unique player; at 6'9", he was as tall as some centers yet played the point guard position. In college, Johnson led Michigan State to the 1979 NCAA championship game against Indiana State, led by player-of-the-year Larry Bird. In the most widely watched title game in history, Johnson led Michigan State to the title.

Early NBA career
After choosing to leave school after his sophomore year, Johnson was the first overall pick in the 1979 NBA Draft, chosen by the Los Angeles Lakers. Johnson's impact was immediate. The Lakers were a talented team and featured one of the game's greatest centers in Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, but the end of the 1970s had seen a stagnant team that couldn't quite get to the level of greatness. Many observers felt that even though Abdul-Jabbar was more valuable, it was Johnson who pushed the Lakers from being a good team to a great one. Featuring a fast-breaking style with often dazzling passes, the Lakers were not only winning games but they won them in exciting fashion, dubbed "Showtime" by fans and media. Only the Boston Celtics, featuring eventual Rookie of the Year Larry Bird and the Philadelphia 76ers with the dynamic Julius Erving matched the Lakers in fan popularity. It did not hurt that Johnson played the game with great joy that was infectious; the Lakers were a fun team to watch and they seemed to be having fun playing the game.

The Lakers met the 76ers in the NBA Finals and as had been true throughout the season, Abdul-Jabbar was the key to the Lakers' success. However, in a game five victory, the Laker center suffered a severely sprained ankle. The Lakers led the best-of-seven series three-games-to-two, but were traveling to Philadelphia for game six without their best player (Abdul-Jabbar was named MVP of the league that year). In a move that shocked and delighted fans outside of Philadelphia, point guard Magic Johnson played center in Abdul-Jabbar's place and played arguably the finest game of his NBA career, scoring 42 points, pulling down 15 rebounds and passing out 7 assists. The Lakers won game six and with it the NBA championship. Johnson was named the NBA Finals Most Valuable Player.

Laker coaching controversy
In his remarkable career, there have been three times where Johnson was the subject of controversy that led to mixed if not negative fan reaction. The first time was during the 1982 season. The Lakers were coming off a disappointing 1981 campaign where they not only failed to defend their title, they failed to make it out of the first round of the playoffs, losing to the Houston Rockets. In 1982, the team started off winning under Head Coach Paul Westhead but the fast-breaking style of the previous years appeared to be replaced by a more deliberate offensive game plan focusing on the half-court effectiveness of Abdul-Jabbar. While far from being the only player critical of the new offense, Johnson was the first to voice his concerns publicly. After a road win against the Utah Jazz, Johnson, who had earlier had a verbal altercation with Westhead, demanded a trade from the team. Laker Owner Jerry Buss instead fired Westhead, inviting league-wide scorn. For perhaps the first time in his career, Johnson found himself being booed by fans across the league, even in Los Angeles. The boos were temporary; Westhead was replaced by Assistant Coach Pat Riley who guided the Lakers to the 1982 NBA Championship.

The second crisis
The second crisis in Johnson's career came after the 1984 season. Ever since their highly publicized match-up in the 1979 NCAA Championship game, Johnson and the Boston Celtics' Larry Bird had been inextricably linked. This was partly due to the similarity of their style of play--both players players made a point of involving their entire team and both were remarkable passers--but also because both players were the primary reason why professional basketball was becoming more popular than it had been in years.

NBA resurgence
For the better part of a decade, it was common opinion that the college game was more exciting than the pro game. In the 1970s, the NBA was a distant third in popularity among major sports behind the NFL and Major League Baseball. But in the 1980s, NBA basketball was enjoying a resurgence due in no small part to the popularity of Johnson and Bird. The two had brought fun, energy, emotion, and excitement back into the NBA. With their popularity came more attention to the league and with more attention to the league came more attention to their rivalry. Even though the Lakers and Celtics met only twice during the regular season, each game between the two teams was always nationally televised and the rivalry between Johnson and Bird, and the Lakers and Celtics, intensified. The hard feelings between the two teams were not helped by the fact that in their history the Celtics and Lakers had met six times previously for the NBA title and all six times, the Celtics emerged victorious.

When the two teams met in 1984 for the NBA Championship, many Lakers looked at it as a chance to give the franchise what it never had before; a victory over the Celtics. In one of the more memorable series in NBA history, the Celtics won the championship in seven games. The Lakers were plagued by mistakes at key moments in the series and Johnson made his share of errors. Bird excelled and was named Finals MVP. The Lakers were devastated by the loss, Johnson particularly so. There was a perception after that series that while Johnson was the flashier player, it was Bird and the Celtics who possessed a work ethic that defeated the more stylistic Lakers. Deeply chastened by the defeat (Celtic forward Kevin McHale had come up with the nickname "Tragic" Johnson to describe Johnson's moodiness in the off-season), the Lakers recommitted themselves and won the 1985 championship against the Celtics. Many of the Lakers said that winning the championship in game six on the Boston Garden floor was the biggest thrill of their careers.

Statistics
Statistically, Johnson was probably the greatest offensive producer ever. Assuming every assist creates 2 points, he created 54.85 points per 48 minutes, compared to Michael Jordan's 50.98 or Wilt Chamberlain's 40.82.

Games: 906
PTS: 17,707
PPG: 19.5
APG: 11.2
RPG: 7.2
FG%: .520
FT%: .848

Cover of Johnson's 1992 paperback book.[edit]
HIV publicity
Outside of basketball, Johnson is probably most well known for his announcement on November 7, 1991, that he had HIV and would retire immediately from the game of basketball after twelve years with the Lakers. Johnson's announcement shocked the nation and increased awareness of AIDS.

Johnson produced a book called What You Can Do to Avoid AIDS. Money from the book was donated to the Magic Johnson Foundation for the prevention, education, and research to fight AIDS.

Other ventures
His post-basketball business ventures include Magic Johnson Theatres, a nationwide chain of movie theaters whose complexes are primarily in urban locations. The chain is now a part of Loews Theatres, but it is operated as a separate entity. More recently, his interests have expanded from a short-lived 1998 talk show The Magic Hour, to ownership of several Starbucks franchises, again primarily in urban locations. Johnson is believed to have earned significantly more money from post-basketball ventures than from his playing days and endorsement deals.

Johnson also works as an NBA studio analyst for TNT.