Magic Johnson

Magic Johnson

File:Earvinmagicjohnson.jpg Magic's NBA days.
Personal information
Born	August 14, 1959 Lansing, Michigan
Nationality	USA
Listed height	6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)
Listed weight	255 lb (116 kg)
Career information
College	Michigan State
NBA draft	1979: 1st overall
Selected by the Los Angeles Lakers
Playing career	1979–1991, 1996
Position	Point guard
Career highlights and awards
3-time NBA MVP 5-time NBA Champion 3-time NBA Finals MVP 12-time All-Star 2-time All-Star MVP 1992 Olympic gold medal
Stats  at NBA.com
Stats  at Basketball-Reference.com

"Earvin Johnson" redirects here. For the Milwaukee Bucks center, see Ervin Johnson.

Earvin "Magic" Johnson, Jr. (born August 14 1959 in Lansing, Michigan) is an American former basketball player, widely regarded as one of the purest passers and best point guards in the game's history. He has won championships at every level of competition - high school, collegiate, professional, and international. His college career at Michigan State University reinvigorated the game of basketball. The 1979 National Championship between Michigan State and Larry Bird's Indiana State, with Michigan State winning the NCAA Championship, was the most-watched college basketball game in history. His professional career consisted of 13 seasons with the Los Angeles Lakers, with whom he won five NBA championships, was named to the NBA All-Star team 12 times, was league MVP three times, and NBA Finals MVP three times. He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2002, and was voted to the NBA's 50th Anniversary All-Time Team in 1996. In 1991 he became one of the first sports celebrities to announce his HIV-seropositivity, and as one of the most well-known public figures to be HIV positive, he has continually worked to educate and raise awareness of the disease.

High school and college

Starting from his first days playing the game at Everett High School in Lansing, Johnson was a unique player. He earned the nickname "Magic" when he was only 15, from local sports writer Fred Stabley Jr., who watched him put up 36 points, 16 rebounds, and 16 assists in one game. In 1977, Magic's senior year, he led Everett High School to a 27-1 record and a state championship, averaging 28.8 points and 16.8 rebounds for the year.

At 6'9", he was as tall as some centers yet played the point guard position (he still remains the tallest dedicated point guard in NBA history). Choosing a college close to home, Johnson put up impressive numbers his freshman year, and helped Michigan State University earn a Big Ten Conference title; the Spartans lost in the Mideast Region final to eventual champions Kentucky. His sophomore year in college, Johnson took the team even farther, winning the NCAA national title in 1979, beating player-of-the-year Larry Bird's Indiana State University. It remains the most widely watched title game in history.

1979-80: First NBA season

Leaving college 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 Kareem had been unable to get the Lakers to the championship series in his previous two seasons. Many observers felt that it was Johnson who pushed the Lakers from being a good team to a great one. He combined the skills of the "true" point guard with those of a forward and a center, and fit in well with the Lakers scheme. Featuring a fast-breaking style with often dazzling passes, the Lakers were winning games in such an exciting fashion they were dubbed "Showtime" by fans and the media. Johnson played with a great joy that was infectious, and the Lakers not only became a fun team to watch, but a team that seemed to be having fun playing. Only the Boston Celtics, featuring eventual Rookie of the Year Larry Bird, and the Philadelphia 76ers, with the dynamic Julius "Dr. J." Erving, matched the Lakers in fan popularity.

In Johnson's first NBA post-season, the Lakers met the 76ers in the NBA Finals. 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 and that year's league MVP (the sixth time Kareem had won the award). In a move that shocked and delighted fans outside of Philadelphia, point guard Magic Johnson, still not yet age 21, started the game as center in Abdul-Jabbar's place, and eventually played every position on the floor, delivering 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, being the only rookie to have ever won the award. Johnson is also one of only four players to win NCAA and NBA championships in consecutive years.

1980s: Controversy, championships, and the rivalry

Due to a knee injury, Magic missed most of a disappointing 1980-81 campaign where the Lakers failed to defend their title, losing in the first round of the playoffs to the Houston Rockets, but the Lakers started off the 1981-82 season winning. But under Head Coach Paul Westhead 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. Lakers 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 controversy was short-lived; Westhead was replaced by Assistant Coach and former broadcaster Pat Riley, and Johnson and the Lakers went on to win the 1982 NBA Title.

Part of the reason Magic wasn't traded was the pact he signed in 1981, which guaranteed his NBA services to the Los Angeles Lakers for 25 years for $25 million dollars. It is the longest player contract ever written in professional sports history, and helped him play for the Lakers in two comeback attempts.

Throughout the 1970s the NBA had suffered through low attendance and minimal television viewership. Interest in the NBA had declined to the point where it was common opinion that the team-oriented college game was more exciting than the individual superstar-emphasized, and violently physical pro game of the era. The NBA was a distant third in popularity among pro sports behind the NFL and Major League Baseball. But with the rising popularity of Johnson and Boston Celtics' Larry Bird in the 1980s the NBA began enjoying a resurgence. Their first three years in the league produced three championships, two for Magic (1979-80, 1981-82) and one for Bird (1980-81). Ever since their highly publicized match-up in the 1979 NCAA Championship game, Johnson and Bird had been inextricably linked as rivals. Their quick success only helped to fuel the rivalry, as did a long-held historical rift between the teams, who had met six times previously for the NBA title in the 1960's, with the Celtics emerging victorious all six times.

Contests between Bird's Celtics and Johnson's Lakers — both during the regular season and in the Finals — attracted enormous television audiences. Not since Boston's Bill Russell squared off against the Lakers' Wilt Chamberlain had professional basketball enjoyed such a marquee matchup. The apparent contrast between the two players and their respective teams seemed scripted for television: Bird, the introverted small-town hero with the blue-collar work ethic, fit perfectly with the throwback, hard-nosed style of the Celtics, while the stylish, gregarious Johnson ran the Lakers' fast-paced "Showtime" offense amidst the bright lights and celebrities of Los Angeles. A 1984 Converse commercial for its "Weapon" line of basketball shoes (endorsed by both Bird and Johnson) reflected the perceived dichotomy between the two players. In the commercial, Bird is practicing alone on a rural basketball court when Johnson pulls up in a sleek limousine and challenges him to a one-on-one match. In fact, their playing styles were not that dissimilar; both relied on knowledge of the game more than pure athletic ability, each made a point of involving his entire team, and both were remarkable passers.

Despite the intensity of their rivalry, Bird and Johnson became friends off the court. Their friendship blossomed when the two players worked together to film the 1984 Converse commercial, which depicted them as archenemies. Johnson appeared at Bird's retirement ceremony in 1992 and emotionally described Bird as a "friend forever."

When the two teams met in 1984 for the NBA Championship, many Los Angeles Lakers looked at it as a chance to give the franchise what it never had before – a victory over the Boston 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" 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. In the 1986-87 season, Magic Johnson had the best season of his career. He led the Lakers with 23.9 PPG and 12.2 APG. The Lakers finished the 1987 season with a league-leading 65-17 win-loss record and Johnson was later named the NBA's Most Valuable Player. In the post-season the Lakers cruised to an amazing 11-1 record before they met the Celtics in the NBA Finals once again. The Lakers would eventually win the series 4-2 and Magic would end up with the NBA Finals MVP. The Lakers would go on to repeat their win in the 1988 NBA Finals, winning a hard fought series against an injury-slowed Isiah Thomas and the Detroit Pistons that went all seven games. The following season, with both Magic and Byron Scott hampered by hamstring injuries during the Finals, Detroit swept a depleted Laker squad (who had gone 11-0 in the first three rounds of the playoffs) to deny Johnson and the Lakers their three-peat as NBA Champions.

During the 1980s, the Celtics or the Lakers appeared in every NBA finals, with Johnson and Bird capturing eight championships between the two of them, Magic and the Lakers winning five while Larry Bird and the Celtics took home three. Their legacies and talent cemented them and their teams as one of the greatest rivalries in sports, and catapulted the NBA back into popularity, drawing in millions of new fans. Through the decade Johnson continued to improve his all-around game. Johnson was a consistent statistical leader, leading the Lakers in scoring three times (1986-87, 1988-89, and 1989-90) and in rebounding twice (1981-82 and 1982-83), as well as leading the league in assists four times and in steals in two consecutive seasons.

1990s: HIV, basketball after retirement

1988's repeat championship would also be the last of Magic Johnson's career, though in the following seasons he and the Lakers would continue to perform strongly. Johnson garnered his third MVP award in the 1989-90 season and maintained his string of years being named to the All-Star team, a consecutive 11 times (12 total) extending from 1982 to the year after his retirement in 1992.

After losing to the Detroit Pistons in the 1989 NBA Finals, The Lakers continued their reign of the Pacific Division, earning division titles every year until Johnson's last 1990-91 season, which broke a nine-year streak of division titles (10 total during Johnson's career). The Lakers still finished that year with a respectable 58-24 record, and that season saw Magic Johnson surpass Oscar Robertson as the all time assists leader (John Stockton would surpass Johnson's record in 1995). Though the Lakers came in second to the Portland Trailblazers in the regular season, they would go on to beat them in the Western Conference Finals, giving the Lakers their 9th Conference title championship in 12 full seasons Johnson played. The Lakers lost the 1991 NBA Finals 4-1 to Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls, the first of their eventual six championships.

On November 7, 1991 Magic Johnson shocked the nation, announcing that he was HIV-positive, and that after twelve years with the Lakers would retire immediately from the game of basketball. Despite having retired and not playing a single game of the 1991-92 regular season, he returned to play his final All-Star game after being voted to the team in 1992. Johnson and the West routed the East team 153-113, and Johnson's 25 points and 9 assists earned him his second All-Star MVP award.

Olympic medal record
Men's basketball
Representing United States
	1992 Barcelona	Team

Johnson would continue his playing career further, participating on the 1992 Olympic Dream Team. Playing alongside fellow superstars such as Larry Bird and Michael Jordan, the Dream Team is considered one of the greatest collections of sports talent to play competitively on the same squad; the team went undefeated, easily beating international competition and winning the Olympic gold medal. Following the summer Olympics, Johnson announced he would return to the NBA for the 1992-93 season and began practicing with the team, even playing during the 1992 preseason, but citing personal reasons he opted out before the season's start and headed back to retirement.

Johnson would make two more brief returns to the game. He stepped in as coach for the final 16 games of the 1993-94 season, replacing Randy Pfund. He managed only a 5-11 record in those games, and the Lakers missed the playoffs. Though the Lakers had hoped he would stay on, Magic chose not to return to the position the next season. But in the 1995-96 season Magic would again come back to the game late in the season, this time as a player. He returned as a power forward, and played the last 32 games of the season, averaging 14.6 points, 6.9 assists, and 5.7 rebounds per game. The Lakers lost to the Houston Rockets in the first round of the playoffs, and Johnson retired for his final time.

Throughout the late 90s and on, Magic continued to make appearances on the court, most often in charity games such as his Midsummer Night's Magic game in 1999 at UCLA, where he played with NBA stars Vince Carter and Tracy McGrady. In the late 90s he also explored his long-held desire for ownership of a team, first with the Swedish Magic M7, a team he also played with for five games in 1999. The team performed very well, including going unbeaten in all five games Magic played in. In 2000 he moved on to another Scandinavian club, developing and owning the Magic Great Danes; while he also played a game with this club, it was in a losing effort which he got injured, preventing any further appearances. He also played some games in the Summer Pro League, a two week playoff-type event that occurs before the start of the NBA season, usually consisting of upcoming NBA rookies, and sometimes more established players looking to get in shape, as well as the occasional retired star such as Magic Johnson. In 2006 he appeared in his LA Lakers uniform for the first time since 1996 as part of the NBA All-Star Game as part of the Players Skills Challenge along with Steve Kerr.

File:Magic johnson book cover.jpg

Cover of Johnson's 1996 paperback book.

Inspiration

Johnson lists Bob Cousy and Oscar Robertson as the two most influential players in his basketball career.

Other ventures

Currently Johnson is CEO of his own business, Magic Johnson Enterprises (MJE). His post-basketball business ventures include Magic Johnson Theaters, a nationwide chain of movie theaters whose complexes are primarily in urban locations. The chain is now a part of AMC Theatres, but it is operated as a separate entity. He's also developed several Starbucks franchises in urban locations. In 1998 he attempted a talk show, The Magic Hour, though it was quickly cancelled. He has since gotten back in front of the camera, working as an NBA studio analyst for TNT. His name graces numerous TGI Friday's franchises as well as 24 Hour Fitness Magic Johnson Sport franchises, the flagship of which is in the Sherman Oaks Galleria. Additionally, he has started a private lending bank that specializes in giving micro loans to urban start-ups. Magic also owns a part of the Dayton Dragons, a very successful Minor League baseball team, and threw out the first pitch for the first ever game played for the Dragons. Johnson is believed to have earned significantly more money from post-basketball ventures than from his playing days and endorsement deals and has an estimated net worth of $800 million.

Johnson also participates in a number of charity ventures, including his own Magic Johnson Foundation, which helps inner-city communities deal with issues surrounding HIV/AIDS and raises funds for research and prevention efforts. In 1996 he wrote a book called What You Can Do to Avoid AIDS. Money from the book was donated to the Magic Johnson Foundation.

Johnson appeared as a guest star on Pee-wee's Playhouse Christmas Special, claiming he was Magic Screen's cousin.

Johnson also has a joint venture with Sodexho. The venture is SodexhoMagic providing catering services.

Johnson has also entered into real estate development, entering into a $1 billion plan to build a hotel and condominium development in Atlanta's midtown area as well as a $120 million plan to develop office space and housing in Miami's Little Havana area [1].

Politics

In recent years, Johnson has been active in supporting members of the Democratic Party. In 2001, he supported Rocky Delgadillo for City Attorney of Los Angeles.

In 2005, Johnson endorsed then-Los Angeles City Councilman Antonio Villaraigosa for Mayor of Los Angeles. This was a change in position from his support of Jim Hahn in the previous election over Villaraigosa. Most saw this as the death knell in Hahn's reelection bid.

In 2006, Johnson announced he endorsed California State Treasurer Phil Angelides for Governor, citing dissatisfaction with Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. He said, "I love him as an actor, comedian, but not as governor." He also said, "California needs a new Governor. Phil Angelides has the business experience, the proven leadership skills, and the vision to be a great Governor. As Governor, Angelides will renew opportunity for Californians, so we can have the best schools, the best colleges and the best chances for our children."

Statistics, awards/honors

• Games: 905
• PTS: 17,707
• ASTS: 10,141
• STLS: 1,724
• BLOCKS: 374
• PPG: 19.5
• APG: 11.2
• RPG: 7.1
• FG%: .520
• FT%: .848

• 3-time NBA Most Valuable Player: 1986-87, 1988-89, 1989-90
• 5-time NBA Champion: 1979-80, 1981-82, 1984-85, 1986-87, 1987-88
• 3-time NBA Finals Most Valuable Player: 1980, 1982, 1987
• 12-time NBA All-Star: 1980, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989 (did not play), 1990, 1991, 1992
• 2-time NBA All-Star Game MVP: 1990, 1992
• 9-time All-NBA First Team: 1982-83, 1983-84, 1984-85, 1985-86, 1986-87, 1987-88, 1988-89, 1989-90, 1990-91
• All-NBA Second Team: 1981-82
• NBA All-Rookie Team: 1979-80
• IBM Award for all-around contributions to team’s success: (1983-84)
• J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award (1991-92)
• Member of 1992 U.S. Olympic Dream Team: Gold Medalist
• Youngest player in NBA history to record a triple-double in the playoffs (13 points, 12 rebounds, 16 assists; 1980)
• One of only three players in NBA history to record a triple-double in his playoff debut (joining Johnny McCarthy and later joined by LeBron James).

Player profile

Few athletes are truly unique, changing the way their sport is played with their singular skills.

— introductory line of Johnson's nba.com biography

The 6-9, 255 lbs. Johnson played the point guard position and is considered as one of the most successful and unique players to play the game. He is a 12-time All-Star, earned ten All-NBA callups and won each three time MVP and three-time Finals MVP and averaged 19.5 points, 7.2 rebounds and 11.2 assists per game. His career total for assists is the third highest (John Stockton is the leader with 15,806), and has the career playoff record for most assists with 2,346.

Johnson is regarded as one of the best ball handlers and passers of all time; nba.com writes "he dazzled fans and dumbfounded opponents with no-look passes off the fastbreak, pinpoint alley-oops from halfcourt, spinning feeds and overhand bullets under the basket through triple teams. When defenders expected him to pass, he shot. When they expected him to shoot, he passed." Johnson led the legendary "Showtime" fast break of the 80s Los Angeles Lakers, astonishing opponents and team mates alike with his trademark "no-look" passes. Colleague Michael Cooper said: "There have been times when he has thrown passes and I wasn't sure where he was going. Then one of our guys catches the ball and scores, and I run back up the floor convinced that he must've thrown it through somebody."

Johnson was a unique player because he played point guard despite being 6-9, a size reserved normally for frontcourt players. He combined the size of a power forward, the one-on-one skills of a swingman and the ball handling talent of a guard, making him one of the most dangerous triple-double threats of all time: his 138 triple-double-games are only second to Oscar Robertson. Statistically, Johnson's offensive production ranks among the game's best. 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.

Magic also gained reputation for playing all five positions well. This is especially showcased in Game 6 in the NBA Finals of his rookie season, where he subbed as center for the injured Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and delivered one of the finest playoff performances of all time. Johnson established the term "oversized point guard".

Johnson's game had few weaknesses. He was exceptionally strong and conditioned, regularly bench pressing over 300 pounds for reps, which allowed him to control smaller players when he needed to guard them. In fact, after the retirement of Michael Cooper, Johnson was usually the one who defended the opposing team's best player. He retired in the top 10 in steals, having averaged 2 steals per game. His ability to perform in the clutch was confirmed early on, as he was named NBA Finals MVP in his rookie season.

Johnson was voted as one of the 50 Greatest Players of All Time by the NBA. On May 11, 2006, ESPN.com rated Johnson the greatest point guard of all time. [2]

Books

Biographies

Johnson's autobiography is Magic Johnson: My Life, published in 1992; ISBN . Some other biographies about him:

• Magic: A Biography of Earvin Johnson by James Haskins; 1981; ISBN 0-89490-044-7
• Magic by Ervin Johnson, Richard Levin; 1983one of the owner of fridays restaurants.
• The Magic: Earvin Johnson by Bill Morgan; 1991; ISBN 0-606-01895-6
• Magic: More Than a Legend by Bill Gutman; 1991; ISBN 0-06-100542-8
• Magic Johnson: Hero On and Off the Court (Millbrook Sports World) by Bill Gutman; 1992; ISBN 1-56294-287-5
• Magic Johnson: Basketball's Smiling Superstar by Rick L. Johnson; 1992; ISBN 0-87518-553-3
• Magic Johnson (Junior World Biographies) by Martin Schwabacher; 1993; ISBN 0-7910-2038-X
• Magic Johnson: Basketball Immortal by Laurie Rozakis; 1993; ISBN 0-86592-025-7
• Magic Johnson (Basketball Legends) by Steven Frank; 1994; ISBN 0-7910-2430-X
• Magic! Against The Odds by Howard Blatt; 1996; ISBN 0-671-00301-1
• Earvin Magic Johnson: Champion and Crusader by Ted Gottfried; 2001; ISBN 0-531-11675-1

Instructional

• Magic's Touch: From Fundamentals to Fast Break With One of Basketball's All-Time Greats by Earvin "Magic" Johnson, Jr. and Roy S. Johnson; 1992; ISBN 0-201-63222-5
• What You Can Do to Avoid AIDS by Earvin "Magic" Johnson; 1996; ISBN 0-8129-2844-X
  • Updated version of Safe Sex in the Age of AIDS by Earvin Magic Johnson; 1992; ISBN 0-8129-2063-5

External links

• Official website
• Magic Johnson's Talent Agency
• Magic Johnson's Official Autographed Memorabilia
• Profile at NBA.com
• NBA's History webpage on Magic
• Basketball Hall of Fame biography