“Magic and Larry Should Be the Captains”: Magic Johnson Recalls How Michael Jordan Handed Over Captaincy of 1992 Dream Team

Magic Johnson got the privilege of playing on the 1992 Dream Team- a team widely considered the greatest collection of basketball talent ever. Not only that, but he got to be a star of the show as a captain of the team. Yet, he recently shared that the captaincy wasn’t something that he won over, and that Michael Jordan had to pass on the title for him to receive it. 

Asking Magic about the Dream Team is a no-brainer of a question for reporters when they get to interview him. His recent media appearance at Dodger Stadium, a team he’s a part-owner of, saw no different, as a reporter couldn’t help but ask him about his experience on the team.

Naturally, Magic started to talk about how much fun it was to play on a team with that amount of talent before diving into why they all gelled so well together.

“Outside of the Lakers, it was the greatest basketball I’ve ever been involved in. Chuck Daly took care of the egos on day one,” Johnson shared on Dodgers All Access. “He called us into a meeting and said, ‘Michael Jordan is going to be the captain of the Dream Team.’ Michael said, ‘No, I don’t deserve to be the captain. Magic and Larry should be the captains.’ So, when he did that, everyone had to leave their egos at the door.”

It’s a stunning revelation that makes Jordan seem like a great guy. Even though he was probably the best player in the world at the time, he knew he couldn’t disrespect his elders. So, he passed the captain title along to Magic and Larry Bird- two pillars of the NBA in the 1980s. 

The move signified an unselfish attitude that the team would perpetuate throughout their time together. Especially for Magic, who couldn’t decide who he was going to pass it to on fast breaks.

“I got Michael Jordan on my right, Larry Bird on my left. Charles Bakley, the slim Charles Barkley. Scottie Pippen, Patrick Ewing, David Robinson, Karl Malone, Clyde Drexler, Chris Mullin, and John Stockton,” Magic listed.

The former Laker great went on to share that throwing a pass to Bird was one of his biggest bucket list wishes when he played. Furthermore, when he finally got the chance to play in a game, Bird got Johnson an assist by making a three-pointer. Magic said he wanted to jump into his rival’s arms like he was a kid again at the time. 

However, just because Jordan handed over the captaincy of the Dream Team doesn’t mean that he didn’t let the older players know that he was better than them.

“I just want you two old guys to know that it’s a new sheriff in town,” Jordan told Johnson at the time.

You really can’t make this stuff up. Even in a time when he’s showing respect, Jordan couldn’t help but trash-talk Magic. He was truly a one-of-one player, unlike anything we’ve ever seen since. 

All in all, it’s a great story about how Magic earned the “C” on his jersey on the Dream Team. As he said, it wasn’t something that he earned, but rather given to him. It’s not like it mattered who the captain or the best player on the team was, though. They were still going to blow teams out by 40+ regardless.