Earvin “Magic” Johnson Jr. or Magic Johnson is an American Basketball player and is a living legend of the NBA. He is one of the greats of the game and his rivalry with Larry Bird revolutionized the NBA and brought viewership from all around the world. Magic played as a point guard for the Los Angeles Lakers for thirteen seasons, winning a lot of championships and MVPs. The name “Magic” perfectly suited him as he could produce magic from his hands at any given moment in the game. He attended Michigan State in his college career and in the 1978-79 season it was Michigan State versus Indiana State which was led by Johnson’s future rival Larry Bird. Magic got the upper hand that time as Michigan won 75-64. This was the most watched college basketball game ever. 

He was drafted by the Lakers as the first overall and had a title-winning rookie season. Johnson helped Kareem Abdul Jabbar win his long-awaited NBA title with the Lakers. The Lakers had a 3-2 lead going into the sixth game in the finals against the Philadelphia 76ers, but Kareem Abdul Jabbar got injured and that is when Magic Johnson stepped up and dropped a forty-two-point game to win the game 127-107. 

He became the only rookie to win an NBA finals MVP. His couple of seasons were not so good as he was injured and had disputes with the coach, Westhead. After that, in the 1982-83 season they reached the NBA finals where they were humiliated and swept by the Sixers. Next season it was officially the start of the Magic-Bird Rivalry as it was Lakers versus the Celtics in the NBA finals. It was an amazing seven-game series with Larry Bird and Co. coming out on top this time. Free picks websites have Magic and Bird both rated at a tie for #6 best overall players of all time

Next season it was again the same NBA finals, but this time the result was the opposite as the Lakers defeated the Celtics in six games. In 1988 it was again the repeat of the same final as this time Lakers won again in six games over their rivals and Magic Johnson was also awarded the finals MVP. Next season Pat Riley promised that the Lakers will defend their title and that is exactly what they did as they defeated Detroit Pistons and Magic won his fifth and final title. Although he did not win the MVP award, he still had a strong season averaging 21.1 points per game. 

Magic Johnson has all the awards to show for his success, winning five NBA titles, three NBA finals MVPs, and three NBA MVPs in 1987, 1989, and 1990. He was also included in NBA all-stars twelve times. Johnson wore the number thirty-three shirt which is retired by his college career team, Michigan State Spartans. In 1991 he announced that he would retire because of HIV, but David Stern invited him to an all-star game in 1992 where he won the MVP. He was also included in the 1992-1993 Olympics dream team that won the gold medal. After that, he returned to the Lakers as their coach, and then in the 1995-96 season he returned as a player for the Lakers, and they lost in the first round of playoffs to Houston Rockets. After the season ended Magic Johnson retired for good and left his mark in the NBA forever.