“I regret not calling LeBron, telling him I was stepping down” – Magic Johnson opens up on the reason behind resigning from Lakers President role
Magic Johnson has always been known as a legend when it comes to the Los Angeles Lakers organization. Even after his illustrious 13-year playing career, Johnson remained close with the franchise that drafted him.
After his Hall of Fame career, Johnson was asked to become the team's president of basketball operations. In 2017, Johnson jumped at the opportunity to be the man in charge. His most notable move was signing free agent LeBron James. But it was the beginning of the end for Johnson in his new role.
Before the final game of the 2018-19 season, Johnson sent shockwaves throughout the NBA world. He announced that he would be stepping down as the president of basketball operations. Speaking recently on an episode of the "Club Shay Shay" podcast, Johnson admitted that he regretted not informing LeBron James.
"I regret not calling LeBron telling him I was stepping down I really regretted that. I owed him that.
Throughout the segment, Magic Johnson went on to explain what was going on behind the scenes. One of the biggest issues was the fact that Johnson wanted to fire head coach Luke Walton. After joining the team in 2016-17 as a first time head coach, Magic was convinced Walton wasn't the right man for the job. Ownership disagreed, which resulted in Magic wanting to step down.
Oh I knew he wasn't. So I said hey we got to let him. He's not the right guy you know he's not a great coach for the Laker team and they wanted to keep him. So I said okay I already knew that I didn't want to fracture the great relationship I had with Jeanie Buss, that's my sister so instead of me you know sitting there and I can never be this dude to just sit and not say what's on my mind.
Johnson continued to reiterate that there were no harsh feelings between himself and Jeanie Buss. He said that once he realized he couldn't be fully in charge, he wanted to find a way out. At the end of the day, Johnson continued to stress he regretted not giving LeBron James a heads up by calling him.
I said let me just exit, it's gonna be best for everybody and I felt some dudes wanted to be in the seat that I had. So hey you go ahead you can have it I'm out and Jeannie and I are still great friends and so it was the best move and I'm glad I did it. I regret not calling him."
Magic Johnson opens up about time as Los Angeles Lakers executive
The news regarding Magic Johnson stepping down abruptly was something that sent shockwaves throughout the NBA world. The Los Angeles Lakers struggled in their first two years with Luke Walton as their head coach.
It resulted in the team missing the playoffs for two consecutive years in a row. Ironically enough, the Lakers would go on to hire a new head coach the following year. That would be Frank Vogel, who would lead the team to an NBA Finals victory in just his first season.
“I wanted to fire Luke Walton.”
Magic Johnson says Luke Walton was the real reason he left the Lakers:
https://t.co/J7FknaAFB7
After Magic Johnson stepped down, Rob Pelinka would take over duties. Johnson was part of the Lakers success when it came to finding value in the NBA draft. He was responsible for drafting Brandon Ingram, Lonzo Ball and Kyle Kuzma, who have all gone on to have great careers.