Magic Johnson had a legendary career, putting himself right up at the top in terms of point guards who played the game. However, his career highlight is unrelated to basketball.
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The Lakers point guard stepped up into a massive role right from his rookie year. Things never came easy for Magic. He wasn’t eased into a developing team and given his time to work into a superstar.
Instead, he joined a team that had Kareem Abdul-Jabbar on it. The Lakers were competing for a title, and Magic was going to be the missing piece they needed to pair alongside Kareem.
In the Finals, the Lakers were matched up against the 76ers, and Magic had to do everything to keep his team afloat. In game 6, LA was without Kareem. Magic stepped in to play center. Sure, Magic was big for a point guard, but to take Kareem’s spot in a Finals game?
Magic wasn’t spurred though. He finished with 42 points, 15 rebounds, and 7 assists as the Lakers closed the Finals out 4-2. He won Finals MVP for that series too.
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Magic Johnson recalls the highlight of his career
Magic finished with 5 NBA titles, and the point guard earned $39 million in his career. For all his accolades, his titles, and legendary moments, the Lakers point guard most fondly remembers something else.
Johnson, Jerry, and Jeanie Buss all became close friends with Magic after drafting him, and they treated him to a wonderful viewing of Michael Jackson’s “Thriller.”
That moment was so precious that when Michael Jackson came to a Lakers game, Magic couldn’t believe it. “He [Michael Jackson] was always and still is my favorite of all time,” Johnson explained. “Everybody thought also, too, that I couldn’t talk him into coming [to a game]. He came to the game. That was probably the highlight — one of my highlights of playing with the Lakers.”
Magic had to stop his game to get Michael Jackson out
Apparently though, bringing Michael Jackson to the game wasn’t the best idea. Of course, Michael Jackson is the ‘King of Pop’ and at the time, he was wildly popular. People were fanatic about him.
So, when he showed up to the game, things got a little out of hand, and the Lakers had to stop the game to escort Jackson out of there before it got too wild.
“Michael Jackson, he was such a perfectionist,” Johnson revealed. “You know, see him look in a mirror for two hours, working on his moves without his brothers. He was right. He sat down; people went crazy. They were running from upstairs, the sides. We had to stop the game to get him out.”
