Stephen Curry may have brought his title into doubt, but Magic Johnson is still the greatest point guard in NBA history. But frankly, his greatness can’t be summed up by even that grand statement. After all, the man was much, much more than that.
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As a 6’9” player, Johnson was essentially a point forward before the league even discovered such a thing could exist. Aside from that, the man could generate his own offense too. And while his shooting wasn’t the greatest, his moves on the inside were so good, he hardly had to rely on it.
You add all that together, and you have a damn good player. And yet, ‘Winning Time’ would have you believe that the man was absolutely taken to school by a certain All-Star point guard.
But, did it really happen? Or were things dramatically different in reality?
The Scene in Question
In the first episode of winning time, Magic Johnson gets invited to a party by Jerry Buss. And as you’d expect, All-Star point-guard for the Lakers, Norm Nixon was there too.
According to the story, Nixon was desperate to keep his place in the starting lineup. And on the other side, Magic Johnson was apparently desperate to show what he was made of.
When these two forces collided, it culminated in arguably the best scene in the whole show.
Take a look at the whole thing in the YouTube clip below.
As we said, an amazing scene.
However, it is common knowledge that ‘Winning Time’ was over-dramatized at times, raising a key question.
Did this scene happen in real life?
NBA
The real Norm Nixon uncovers the truth behind this scene
During an interview appearance, the real Norm Nixon was asked to fact-check the scene.
And frankly, the answer is a tad bit disappointing.
Take a look at the short YouTube clip below.
So, not only did they not go 1v1 ahead of Johnson’s rookie season, but they never once did it at all.
But if it really did happen, would it play out as it did in the story?
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