The Los Angeles Lakers extended their postseason run with a 110-106 Play-in Tournament victory against the New Orleans Pelicans. The last season’s conference finalists are now set to face the defending champions Denver Nuggets in the first round of the playoffs. When he heard the news, this matchup was seemingly the harbinger of ecstasy for the franchise icon, Magic Johnson, as he immediately called it a ‘must-see TV’. In the process, the 5x champion also ended up providing a little recap of the Lakers’ recent win as well, capturing the attention of the NBA community.
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After the conclusion of the game, the 64-year-old took to X (formerly Twitter) to express his thoughts. He showcased his excitement as a representative of the NBA fans, stating, “NBA fans all over the world, this is what we all wanted! The World Champion Denver Nuggets vs my Los Angeles Lakers. Get ready, because this will be must-see TV!!”.
This served as an extension of his enthusiasm over the postseason games. After all, right ahead of the start of the Play-in Tournament, Johnson put into limelight the immense quality of the matchups in the NBA. Shedding light on the All-Star caliber, he declared, “This will be an amazing night for the NBA, and the play-ins will be just as good as the playoffs!”.
His delight seemingly reached a new height following the triumph of the Lakers. Consequently, the 12x All-Star provided a summary of the latest win while passing the key contributors. Initially, he put under the limelight the outcome-defining display of D’Angelo Russel, before LeBron James and Anthony Davis also received praise for their endeavors to ensure victory.
D-Lo Russell made the two plays to seal the victory for the Lakers! First, the steal and then the 3-pointer in the corner. LeBron had another strong game with 23/9/9 [points, rebounds and assists respectively], and AD was a monster on the boards! The Lakers were phenomenal at the free-throw line in the fourth quarter to…
His words partly captured the resurgence of the Lakers in the last few games. After all, the first-round matchup provided the organization with an opportunity to take revenge. During last season’s Western Conference Finals, the Nuggets had humiliated the LA side with a 4-0 statement win. Johnson certainly had that aspect at the back of his mind while hyping up the upcoming clash.
On top of that, his comments displayed his love for the game as seemed excited about the happenings all around. This level of active involvement from the icons of basketball certainly leads to further fan interest in the proceedings. Hence, Johnson, in a way, continues to serve as an ambassador of the league, adding volume to his tag of ‘savior’ for the franchise.
