"Magic" Johnson. It was he who brought more concepts, wisdom and skills to the basketball court, which raised the viewing and competitiveness of basketball to a new level in the 1980s. Johnson is undoubtedly one of the greatest stars in NBA history.
Elvin Johnson was born in Lansing, Michigan. He has been practicing basketball obsessively since he was a child. When he was still in middle school, he was called "Magician" by a local newspaper reporter because of his excellent basketball skills, so that later generations forgot his real name, Evan, and replaced it with "Magician". Johnson has comprehensive skills and is the highest point guard in NBA history. At the same time, he can play any position and is an all-around star. Johnson's advancement speed is extremely fast, and his passing skills are varied, often creating very comfortable offensive opportunities for his teammates. In particular, he can play basketball like a blind chess player, making accurate passes without even looking at his teammates.
In high school, Johnson relied on his exaggerated passing methods and playing style to win the best rebounding team twice in 1987, 1989, and 1990 (1982, 1983). His extremely strong performance ability and dizzying "No look pass" made the "Showtime" of Lakers basketball lead the basketball style of the 1980s. Although he and Bird were his closest friends off the court, they sparked a "Lakers vs. Celtics" rivalry on the court and attracted millions of fans to watch the NBA.
In 1980, Johnson was selected as the first pick of the Lakers in the first round. In his first season with the Lakers, he helped the team win the 1980 championship. He scored a triple-double in the first game of the playoffs, and eventually won his first career championship and became the NBA Finals MVP. Since then, the only player to have a triple-double in his first career playoff game is LeBron James in 2005. At that time, with the total score of 3:2, in the sixth game, the Lakers' main center "Skyhook" Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was seriously injured, and the 20-year-old Johnson replaced him as the center. In that fierce battle, the young Johnson scored 42 points, grabbed 15 rebounds, 7 assists, and 3 steals. The entire court became his performance stage, and he led the team to win his first championship ring. , and also won the MVP award of the NBA Finals. During Johnson's basketball career, he won the NBA MVP Award three times in 1987, 1989, and 1990, and won the championship five times (1980, 1982, 1985, 1987, 1988). In 1992, he and Larry Bird served as co-captains and led the Dream Team to sweep Barcelona and win his first and last Olympic gold medal.
Perhaps Johnson's most classic game was Game 6 of the NBA Finals on May 16, 1980. As a rookie, Johnson replaced the injured Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as center. Although he was playing in Philadelphia away from home, he was active in every position on the court and eventually became the absolute dominant player in that game. He scored 42 points and grabbed 15 rebounds in one game, which were the highest scores of the day. He also defeated the Philadelphia 76ers led by Julius Erving and won the NBA championship that year. Fans across the country have since truly understood the reason for the "Magician". After that, he led the Lakers to four championships.
In 1991, "Magic" unfortunately contracted HIV and had to say goodbye to the NBA. But he did not give in, and earned people's understanding and respect with his sincerity and integrity. Then, under the premise of his active treatment, he continued to engage in basketball training and competition, and participated in the Eastern All-Star Game and the Olympic Games in 1992. . In 1996, Johnson came out again after four years and did his best to accelerate the maturity of the young Lakers.
In March 1997, after a test, Johnson miraculously defeated his terminal illness, and HIV was almost nowhere to be found in his body. Johnson's tenacity, integrity, and toughness, as well as his excellent basketball skills and awareness, are a valuable asset to the world of basketball.
After Johnson retired, he began to engage in business. He operates a national chain of movie theaters called Magic Johnson Cinemas, which is currently part of Loews Cinemas but remains an independent operation. His interests also extended to a talk show "The Magician's Hour" and the acquisition of several Starbucks coffee chains. It is said that Johnson's income from business after retirement has exceeded his playing salary and advertising income.
Few players are truly special, and few players use their extraordinary skills to change the way a sport like his is played. Earvin "Magic" Johnson is one of them.
How great is Johnson? Very great. Perhaps future generations of fans may regret not being born a few years earlier because they couldn't see Magic in person and could only watch his highlights.
He is what Bob Cousy was to the 1950s, Oscar Robertson was to the 1960s, and Julius Erving was to the 1970s.
Moreover, Earvin Johnson is also a revolutionary player. At 6-9, he is the tallest point guard in NBA history. His superhuman talent can amaze and admire even those who don't often watch football.
Whether it’s a back pass to James Worthy on a fast break, a buzzer-beater in halftime, or his charming smile, anyone who has watched Magic play will say it’s amazing. Indelible memories for a lifetime. Once he sets foot on that field, everyone will exclaim: How can such a tall man do so many incredible moves? !
Johnson achieved everything that any player could dream of during his 13-year NBA career with the Lakers. He is the absolute core of a team that has won 5 championships. He has won the MVP of the regular season and the finals 3 times. He has been selected to the All-Star Game 12 times and was selected to the All-NBA Team 9 times. He also broke the career assist record held by Oscar Robertson at the time. At the same time, he was also a major member of the American Dream Team at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics.
His comprehensive performance helped people add the term "triple double" to the basketball lexicon. Although the first triple-double in history was Oscar Robertson, unfortunately, no one cared about triple-doubles in the 1960s.
Johnson has used his childlike love of sports and competition to get to where he is now. His love for basketball completely outweighed the temptations of money, fame and achievement.
If you had to pick one of the most amazing aspects of Johnson, it would be his gorgeous passing skills. He used no-look passes one after another in the fast break, alley-oops across the half court, extremely rotating passes, and long passes for more than 3/4 of the field, which stunned the opponents and made the fans crazy. He shot when the opponent thought he was going to pass the ball, and when everyone thought he was going to shoot, he chose to pass the ball.
Former Lakers swingman Michael Cooper said: "Sometimes when he throws a long pass, I don't know who he will throw it to, and then one of my teammates catches the ball and then Scored. Then I ran back to the backfield and told him he better find someone in the middle to pass." On August 14, 1959, Earvin Johnson Jr. was born in Lansing, Michigan. , at home, he has 9 brothers and sisters. His father worked in a General Motors factory and his mother was a school administrator. Little Earvin spent his childhood singing on street corners with his friends and, of course, playing ball. Called "Junior" or "June Bug" by his neighbors, he still appears on the basketball court at 7:30 every morning.
“He practices almost every day.” Johnson said in an interview with Us Weekly. “I dribble with my right hand on the way to the store and my left hand when I come back. I sleep with the basketball at night. ."
He was first called "Magic" when he was at Everett High School. A sports columnist gave him the nickname after seeing the 15-year-old prep student's 36 points, 16 rebounds and 16 assists. (Johnson's mother, a devout Christian, thought the nickname was disrespectful.) As a junior, Johnson led his high school to a 27-1 record and the state championship, scoring 28.8 points and 16.8 rebounds.
Johnson wanted to go to college away from home, so he chose Michigan State University. As a freshman, his statistics were very dazzling (17.0 points, 7.9 rebounds, 7.4 assists), and he led the team to a 25-5 record and won the Big Ten championship. In his sophomore year, when he was selected to the All-American team, Johnson led his team to defeat Bird's Indiana State University in what is considered the most classic NCAA championship game in history and won the national championship. Julius Earving said of him at the time: "Magic is the kind of player who can still control the game even if he only takes 3 shots in a game."
After completing what he wanted to achieve in college , he gave up the last two years of his studies and directly participated in the 1979 draft. Originally, the Utah Jazz should have been the lucky one, but they traded the pick to the Lakers three years ago when they signed Gail Goodrich. So the Lakers selected Johnson with the first overall pick that year.
At that time, the Lakers were also undergoing a major change: Jack McKinney became the team's new coach, Jerry Buss was the new owner, and Johnson also wore the purple and gold as one of the seven new faces in the lineup. Battle clothes. Buss hopes the Lakers' stable fan base can put an end to the boredom and get back on their feet. "Showtime" was born.
Those fans who were lucky enough to witness Johnson's first game immediately saw the crazy performances that Johnson would have in his subsequent career.
After beating the San Diego Clippers on Abdur-Jabbar's game-winning shot, Johnson went wild, giving everyone high-fives and bear hugs. In that case, everyone thought he could lose control at any time. In the end, even Jabbar went over to persuade him to calm down, because after all, there were still 81 games to play--and they hadn't counted the playoff games.
The Rookie of the Year award that season went to Larry Bird, but the Lakers won the championship. The Lakers won the Western Conference championship with a record of 60-22, which is also the second-best record in the league. (After 14 games of the regular season, Paul Westhead took over as head coach, replacing McKinney who was injured in a car accident.) In 77 games, Johnson's numbers were a carbon copy of his high school numbers (18.0 points, 7.7 rebounds, 7.3 steals). assists). He was selected to the All-Rookie First Team and became the first player to be selected to the All-Star Game as a rookie, following Elvin Hayes 11 years ago.
In the 1980 Finals against the 76ers, Johnson's performance in the crucial Game 6 has become a classic. Abdul-Jabbar had to miss Game 6 in Philadelphia because he suffered a serious ankle injury during his 40-point performance in Game 4.
Johnson, a 20-year-old rookie, replaced him as the main center, and with his small sky hook and rebounding, he scored 42 points, 15 rebounds, 7 assists and 3 steals, and finally helped The Lakers won. He even opened the game with a jump ball for the Lakers. Johnson also became the first rookie in history to win the Finals MVP. This is also a good example of the different ways he can help the Lakers win.
When Westhead described his young rookie to LA TIMES, he said: "At first we all thought he was a great player, but later we discovered that he can indeed bring us a lot of help. And energy. It's like finding out a plastic surgeon can fix a bulldozer." The second season was brutal for Johnson and the Lakers. In the first month of the game, 7-2 Hawks center Tom Burleson pressed on Johnson's knee, causing him to miss the next 45 games. He contributed in the Lakers' 3-game 2-win playoff game against the Rockets, but he only hit 2-for-13 from the field, and he made a three-pointer at the end of the third game. The Lakers lost 86-89. Lost the game and also lost the series.
In the 1981-82 season, the Lakers began to rebound, winning the Pacific Division Championship again, and defeated the 76ers 4-2 in the Finals. Johnson also became the MVP of the Finals again. But some ugly things happened during that season. At the beginning of the season, Westhead wanted to make adjustments to the offensive system, and Magic believed that would weaken his role in the team. According to many reports, Johnson rushed into the break after a game and yelled: "I can't play here anymore, I want to leave, I want to be traded." Reporters were waiting for Johnson to say that it was just a joke. But he did not come forward to clarify.
The next day, Westhead was fired and his assistant coach Pat Riley took over. In Riley's first game, fans at the Big West Forum booed Johnson when the player was introduced. Then in Seattle, fans jeered him every time he touched the ball. He also lost All-Star voting for the first time in his life without injury. It wasn't until he used a very gorgeous performance in the playoffs that he finally silenced the most aggressive ones.
On the court, Johnson's performance has always been outstanding. He won the steals title for the second time, and in any of his subsequent seasons he never averaged less than 17.6 points, 5.9 rebounds and 10.5 assists.
In the two years after Westhead dismissed get out of class, Magic's personal achievements were quite remarkable, but the Lakers struggled. Johnson won the first two single-season assists titles of his career during this stretch and continued to build on his already stellar all-around play. But in the 1982-83 NBA Finals, the Lakers faced the 76ers again. Norm Nixon, James Worthy and Bob McAdoo were all troubled by injuries, and the Lakers were swept out by their opponents.
Before the 1984 Finals, Nixon had left the team, Jabbar was nearly 40 years old, and Magic also signed a 25-year contract worth 25 million. That year's Finals was the lowest point of Johnson's career. His mistakes at the last minute of Games 2, 4, and 7 cost the Lakers the game.
When Johnson began to improve his outside shooting and began to set assist records, the Lakers also won three championships in the next four years. The first ring came from their revenge game against the Celtics in 1985.
After being completely defeated by their opponents 148-114 in Game 1 in the famous "Memorial Day Massacre", the Lakers rebounded and won the championship in Game 6. This victory at the Celtics' home court also allowed them to finally get rid of the shadow of eight consecutive losses to their opponents that began in Minneapolis.
In the 1986-87 season, with Abdul-Jabbar missing a lot of games due to eye problems, Johnson did what many scouts thought he couldn't do: score. He scored 38 points against the Rockets and scored a career-high 46 points in the next game against the Kings. His scoring average of 23.9 is also the highest of his career.
In that season, Johnson was named the most valuable player of the regular season. He had waited eight years for this award, and Bird had already won three. Johnson is eager to receive this award. "Right now, he's 3-0," Johnson told LA TIMES before the winner was announced. "It's driving me crazy." (He eventually tied Bird for the 1989 and 1990 MVP awards. )
Johnson also won the 1987 Finals MVP after defeating the Celtics 4-2. That year was also the year that Johnson completely replaced Abdul-Jabbar as the team leader. During the team's internal bullfight, 40-year-old center Abdul-Jabbar taught his protégé his sky-hook stunt. Johnson was quickly able to use this technique flexibly, and used this technique to hit a 107-106 winning shot in Game 4 of the Finals. That victory also directly led to the Lakers' second victory over the Celtics in three years.
In 1988, the Lakers defeated the Pistons in seven finals games and became the first team to win the championship after the 1968-69 season. In the next two years, Johnson averaged more than 20 points and led the Lakers to consecutive Western Conference championships. In the 1988-89 season, Abdul-Jabbar's last season, Johnson was affected by a hamstring injury in the Finals, and the Lakers were swept by the mature Pistons in the Finals. The next year, the Lakers made their earliest exit in nine years when they were defeated by the Suns in the conference semifinals.
Johnson's performance in the 1990-91 season helped the Lakers achieve a 58-24 record. After defeating the Trail Blazers led by Clyde Drexler in the Western Conference Finals, the Lakers reached the Finals again. Although they eventually lost to MJ's Bulls 1-4, Magic still completed the feat of reaching the finals nine times in his 12-year career.
Before the 1991-92 season, Magic shocked the world with the news that he tested positive for HIV and chose to retire as a result. However, he still qualified for the All-Star Game that year, led the Western Conference to a 153-113 victory and won the MVP. For his popularization of knowledge about AIDS prevention, he also received the J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award that year. Former Lakers head coach Mike Dunleavy commented: "Some people thought he was just a legend on the court, but now, he has become a fighter who fights for his beliefs."
Even when he was infected with HIV Even in the most difficult moments, the smile on his face has never been wiped off. Jack Knoll said: "The greatest thing about Magic is that his human bravery reaches the level of God. We think he is one of the best people, and no one will dislike Magic."
Johnson in 1992 He represented the Dream Team at the Olympics in Barcelona, ??wrote a book on safe sex, started his career as a businessman, became an NBC television commentator and tried to buy an NBA team. With 16 games left in the 1993-94 season, he replaced Randy Pfund as the Lakers' head coach.
Under Johnson's passionate leadership, the team began to attack the playoffs. The Lakers quickly won 5 consecutive victories, but the team lost 5 of the next 6 games. On the court, Johnson announced that he would not return to the Lakers as head coach next season.
"I want to go home," he told United Media News. "Being a coach has never been my dream. I want to own a team and become a businessman. He must do it for your dream. Struggle." In 1994, Johnson realized his dream and became one of the Lakers' greatest players.
In 1995, he was involved in another business venture. He opened a chain of movie theaters in a few areas of LA and gave some speeches there. He also participated in the Orators basketball team (a team composed of former NBA and college players) that traveled to Asia and Australia and entertained fans around the world.
But he did not completely abandon the NBA. After resting for four and a half seasons, he returned to the court again in the second half of the 1995-96 season and played the remaining 32 games of the regular season for the Lakers.
At that time, his weight had reached 255 pounds, and he appeared more at the power forward position rather than the point guard position. After the Lakers were eliminated by the Rockets in the first round of the playoffs, Johnson announced his retirement again.
In Johnson's 13-year NBA career, he scored 17,707 points (19.5 per game), 6,559 rebounds (7.2) and 10,141 assists (11.2), ranking ninth in history with 1,724 steals. He also holds All-Star Game records with 127 assists and 10 three-pointers.
In the 1996-97 season, Johnson was selected as one of the NBA's 50 greatest stars. In 2002 he was inducted into the Naismith Hall of Fame.
Was he the greatest player of his time? Another great player thinks he is.
“Magic is like no one else,” Larry Bird told the Chicago Daily News. “I’ve never seen anyone as good as him.
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