he just wasn't cut out for this kind of stuff. glad he cut bait so the lakers can find someone to help shepherd them into a new set of glory days, like the ones they enjoyed when magic dribbled the ball along with kareem, jamaal, worthy, mike cooper, nixon, and mcadoo.
1
Magic has always seemed like a good guy. But this is disappointing. He tried to word it differently but by his own admission -- over and over in that 45 minute news conference -- he was effectively quitting because it was hard. Leadership in a business like this is hard; not everyone is going to like you, you have to make tough calls, the pressure can be overwhelming. But that is the gig and you push though to achieve success. The Lakers have not achieved success (yet), this departure is too early.
3
The days of glorifying Magic as a NBA deity are thankfully over. Did he really think bringing in a broken down LeBron James would save him from the exposure that the game is a different creature now, and time has passed him by ? Jeannie Buss gave him a shot when no one else would, out of loyalty. The real proof will be when no one else calls him.
2
Broken down LeBron? That's preposterous.
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@lawrence Lebron hasnt played well in last 2 seasons, not even close to being best player in league anymore ...you must not be watching
Good for him!! Magic should go and have fun doing whatever he's happy with. One of most prolific players in NBA history, almost re-inventing point guard in a golden age of professional basketball.
1
I guess 'basketball IQ' does not automatically translate to business management IQ.
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@SteveRR
What are you talking about?
"With the regular season set to begin on October 16, the newest star of the storied franchise is driving up ticket prices not only at home, but in nearly every city he plays in. At the Staples Center alone, ticket prices are up 427 percent over last season according to StubHub. However, it’s not just at home: Road games for the Lakers are once again a big draw." --From CNBC October 2018--
You DO know who got Lebron to come top the Lakers don't you??
1
@SteveRR Ever wonder how "sport" comes down to business management? The American Dream = Business management?
@Ledoc254 He didn't get Lebron to the Lakers. Lebron lives there and his business interests are there. The fact he wanted to be in LA was the worst kept secret in the NBA
1
Clearly not President material!
2
He just wants to have fun, time to grow up.
@I'se the B'y Magic did grow up; he knows what he wants to do and with whom. And he has the luxury of being able to do it.
1
This is going to be a big PR hit for him. He now has failed at so many different positions: talk show host, coach, baseball and basketball executive. But he has also had so many successes in his life. The unforgivable act is not being man enough to tell Jeannie Buss first. That is weak and casts a bit of a shadow over his extraordinary legacy.
6
I was at MSU in 1977 when all the talk was about this kid from Lansing Everett High. I still think of him as Earvin "Magic" Johnson. All good wishes to him; he has always been magic.
8
Magic wants to “have fun again”? Huh? He quits in a hastily called news conference without telling the team owner, whom he knows for almost 40 years? Something else is afoot here. I hope his health is OK and this is not due to some medical issue.
3
From a distance, it seems LeBron James made the knowing decision, when he moved from the east to the west, and to the Lakers, that he would not be in the finals, perhaps for a while, and perhaps never again. This outcome seemed rather obvious in his decision-making.
2
A sad way to go for a very decent man. Too decent for the job. Professional sports have become an embarrassment, but our love of great athletes keeps us coming. As for fandom, it's now part of the sickness. Once our heroes could keep their mere humanity hidden, no more.
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@Gary:
Your comment is easily the best of the lot.
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@Gary "A sad way to go for a very decent man. Too decent for the job."
Other folks would say that Magic made a complete mess of the Lakers front office all by himself, then quit and ran away by holding a press conference while pathetically lacking the courage to give the news to his boss first. Pray tell, what's "decent" about any of that?
3
From my dream job to “I want to get back to having fun”in just 2 short years.oh,the troubles of the rich and fabulous.
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finally! time for the new Lakers era.
Editor’s note: This comment has been anonymized in accordance with applicable law(s).
making room for lebron James
They didn't make the play-offs? So it was a disaster? There, in one word, Cacciola gives us the extent of the American disease of winners and losers.
2
The pernicious influence of LeBron.
2
No one was happier when he hit that running hook ending Boston's stranglehold. But what people don't know would shock them -- I've had men AND women tell me about their personal encounters. People have an image... things aren't always what they seem.
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@Seamus OK, where is the second part of your insinuation?
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Being an All-Star on the court does not necessarily impart a player with genius in the front office. This has been proved over and over again. Cases in point: Larry Bird and Dave Debuschere.
1
@paul How about the most obvious one to New Yorkers--Phil Jackson?
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@paul The the GOAT, Michael Jordan.
Yes, Johnson was a great player, but he was a bust as a businessman, a bust as a coach and a bust as a GM.
Nice guy though.
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@Charles alexander
Magic Johnson Enterprises is hugely successful.
Magic's net worth is upwards of $600M...so, pretty successful businessman. Sold his percentage of the Lakers for a mere $27M, and the list goes on and on.
7
Magic really is brilliant. Of course there is palace intrigue, but he has been so overwhelmingly successful in his career and businesses, how could he possibly play second fiddle for any length of time?
2