MAGIC JOHNSON...A blog site of mine would have to include a few words about my favourite athlete ever...Earvin Magic Johnson.....#1 reason I am a Lakers fan to this day is Magic is still a big part of the organization...from the first time I saw Magic play I admired the creativity/skill/team first attributes he brought to the court..5 time NBA Champion - 12 time All-Star - 3 time MVP and 3 time NBA Finals MVP - selected to All NBA 1st team 9 times - 11.2 Assists Per Game is the highest career average ever...NCAA National Champion...Original Dream Team Gold Medal winner....Magic Johnson Foundation which donates numerous Scholarships, and helps HIV research, and also benefits several children every year
My early basketball memories are of Magic vs Dr J...we know that just after that one of the all-time classic sports rivalries of Magic vs Bird would rule the 80's...Lakers and Celtics would meet 3 times in the Finals from 1984 through 1987 with the Celtics taking the first Title in 1984 in 7 games, then the Lakers taking 1985 and 1987 each in 6 games...Magic was the MVP in the '87 series...watching Magic commit to winning and being witness to the Showtime Lakers is one of my favorite memories in sports...his leadership on and off the court was inspiring and entertaining to me
Being a fan of Magic lead me to watch numerous Lakers games, and numerous Lakers/Celtics games...this was a blessing in disguise as Bird and the Celtics were of course hated by me for a long time, but if you ever watched those Celtics teams of Bird, McHale, Parrish, DJ, and even ex-Blue Jay Danny Ainge you could not help but become enamoured with their brilliance...growing to respect, then admire, then love the Celtics of the 80's was a blessing for me and it was all born from loving Magic
I feel Magic had a hand in my memories of Kareem, Byron Scott, James Worthy, Pat Riley, and I also believe that he was the leader of a team that continued the high standard for that organization...Magic is still involved with the Lakers to this day - I think he is a contributor to why the Lakers went out and signed SHAQ because Magic-led teams set standards with that fan base and management knows that L.A. fans know winning basketball, and have come to expect winning basketball ( from the Lakers only of course...Clippers are one of the all-time bad franchises)The Score TV station did a wonderful highlight reel a few months ago of several minutes of just Magic Johnson highlights...it was an amazing montage for me as it really took me back to vivid memories of where I was watching these very highlights live, and how watching Magic was energetic to my sole.....a no-look to Kareem...another to Michael Cooper...alley-oop for Big Game James...dishes to a rookie Elden Campbell for monster dunks...going one-on-one with Jordan and Isiah at the end of the 1992 All-Star game and making 3's and winning MVP of that game...special memories for yours truly
I always felt Magic was a true leader and made people around him better...I always look forward to seeing him do anything because his attitude and his smile are so infectious
An athlete that spends a Hall-Of-Fame career with the same team, and someone to be proud of because of his charitable and business ventures = what's not to love?!?!
craig.ballard@hotmail.com
