40-year-old Magic Johnson bought a franchise in Sweden and played 5 games for them, before they went bankrupt

After his premature retirement from the NBA, Magic Johnson tried various alternates to keep feeding his passion for basketball

Magic Johnson is one of the best players to ever play in the NBA. He was a part of the NBA’s Top-50 team in 1997 and again, the Top-75 team in 2022. The 6’9″ point guard is widely regarded as one of the best point guards ever. He played in the NBA for 13 seasons between 1979-1991 and then for a brief time in 1996.

Magic was drafted by the Lakers, and he helped them win five championships in the 1980s. The Lakers were constantly battling with Larry Bird and his Celtics but still managed to win championships in 1980, 1982, 1985, 1987, and 1988.

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An HIV diagnosis caused Magic to retire prematurely. However, the love for basketball that Magic had never faded away. He tried to play in the NBA again, playing with the 1995-96 Lakers. He played 32 games, starting only 9 of them. It looked like Magic had lost his magic. He didn’t give up, and tried his hand at basketball again, this time overseas.

Magic Johnson played for Swedish and Danish basketball clubs

In 1998, a 40-year-old Magic Johnson decided he still wanted to play basketball, and purchased a team in the Swedish league. The team was named M7 Boras, and Magic didn’t only own it, but also played for them. He played 5 games for them, even registering a 30-point outing during the same.

However, the 40-year-old didn’t have the stamina to carry on. Following his departure, the team went bankrupt.

Magic didn’t just play for the Magic M7; he owned them.

As a 40-year-old, Johnson was undefeated in his five games with the club, but it wasn’t enough to save the club as it was forced into reconstruction.

He also briefly later joined the Danish team, The Great Danes.

— Kicks (@kicks) August 15, 2022

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To conclude his chapter as a player, Magic went to a Danish club named The Great Danes.