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4 Years After Ending His Lackluster Tenure at Front Office, Magic Johnson Recalls One Thing He’ll “Never Forget” With $5.9 Billion Franchise

Published 10/01/2023, 1:50 PM EDT

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Magic Johnson is widely considered as the best point guard that the NBA has ever seen. His life’s journey as a decorated NBA player and  a successful entrepreneur post-retirement is one of the most inspirational NBA stories of all-time. Today, he is a spokesperson for health. In a recent interview, he talks about his new venture with YMCA and healthcare company ’DSK’, tackling the issue of ‘Respiratory Syncytial Virus’ for people above the age of 60.

In the recent interview, Magic Johnson also opens up about his fondest memory as a Laker.

Magic Johnson’s Fondest Memory

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In an interview with ‘ABC15’, the host Jamie Warren asks the NBA Hall of Famer, “This is a loaded question but what is your fondest memory from back then?”. Magic Johnson replies, “Oh wow…it has to be the 5 championships I won with the Lakers.”. He further adds, “”It was something that I’ll never forget and going to the finals nine times in 12 years, and you never forget your teammates, right? Because we were on this incredible journey together.”.

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In his 13-year-long NBA career, Magic Johnson achieved everything a player could only dream of. He won 5 NBA championships, multiple MVP awards and even a gold medal in the 1992 Olympics with the iconic “Dream Team”.

However, Magic Johnson’s incredible NBA career came to an abrupt end when he shockingly announced to the world that he had tested positive for HIV/AIDS. The 5x NBA champion decided to retire from the NBA in order to take care of his family’s financial future.

The former Lakers star vowed to become a spokesperson for HIV/AIDS, which at that time seemed like a “death sentence” for whoever contracted the disease. His consistent attempts over the years to bring awareness regarding ‘HIV/AIDS’ has broken the stigma and the fear around who could get it.

Magic Johnson also talked about the high probably of contracting ‘Respiratory Syncytial Virus’ if you’re about the age of 60 in his recent interview with ‘ABC15’. His  journey towards good health is a major inspiration to people from all paths of life as the former Laker takes on the role of a new spokesperson for “raising awareness about RSV”.

Magic Johnson’s tenure at Los Angeles Lakers’ Front Office

Despite majorly contributing to the legacy of the Los Angeles Lakers as a player, Magic Johnson struggled to make an impact as a member of the Lakers Front Office. Following the Lakers’ four-season playoff-drought, Magic Johnson was appointed as the ‘President of Operations’ of the Los Angeles Lakers in February, 2017. The L.A. Lakers Front Office even fired the previous general manager and hired Rob Pelinka (a longtime agent) who directly reported to Magic Johnson.

via Imago

Despite the 5x NBA champion’s best efforts, his tenure as the ‘President of Operations’ was “short, chaotic and playoff-off free”. The Lakers administration succeeded in bringing incredible talent to Los Angeles, including the franchise-altering signing of LeBron James.

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However, the $5.9 Billion franchise failed in putting together complementary pieces, or attracting a second NBA superstar who could’ve helped improve the team chemistry and performance.

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What are your thoughts on Magic Johnson’s confession on his fondest moment from his playing days? Let us know in the comments below!

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Written by:

Akhil Chakravarthy

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Akhil is an NBA writer at EssentiallySports. He has been following the NBA for more than a decade and represented his state at the National level. To hone his understanding of the inner workings of the game, he closely follows the analysis of popular NBA insiders and reporters like Adrian Wojnarowski and Shams Charania.
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Edited by:

Caroline Joseph