Although he is not officially a member of the organization anymore, Magic Johnson is still not shy about voicing his opinions on the Los Angeles Lakers.
Perhaps the greatest player in team history still bleeds purple and gold, and he clearly wants the best for the franchise, even if he can come off as critical at times.
A few weeks ago, he said that the Lakers should not trade LeBron James, something that many fans are actually hoping for.
Johnson is now getting involved in non-fungible tokens (NFTs) of some of his most memorable moments that fans can buy and own for themselves.
He did an interview with David Aldridge of The Athletic on the topic, and inevitably, Aldridge asked him about the Lakers.
Johnson didn’t hold back in discussing the failure that was the 2021-22 season for L.A.
Via The Athletic:
“DA: So I wondered what you think it’s been like for LeBron and AD to not have made the playoffs at all this year — and for LeBron, it’s twice now in his four seasons with the Lakers.
“MJ: See, we, you had expectations, right? Everybody was saying the Lakers, with Russell (Westbrook), man, we’re talking about NBA Finals. We’re going to be one of the favorites. So, it’s definitely got to be driving them crazy — it should be driving all three of them crazy. Because we didn’t meet those expectations. We failed. Now it’s, what are we going to do to make sure it doesn’t happen next season? To your point, which is the biggest point, who’s going to lead that effort, coaching-wise? And then, so once a coach is in place, what are we going to do now about the roster? It’s really important that they get the right person, and then make, hopefully, the right roster moves. We know it can’t be a lot, but it can be something. I guess they’ve got to make those decisions.”
Johnson also talked about the 5,000-pound elephant in the room – the Russell Westbrook dilemma, possibly trading him and whether the Lakers should consider keeping him and giving the Westbrook experience another try.
“DA: I talked with you about Russell last year, when he was about to break Oscar’s career record for triple-doubles. And I thought it could work with him and LeBron and AD this year. Do you think it could still work?
“MJ: Well, it only can work, if you’ve got the coach — the right coach. To me, it still comes down to, who’s the coach? And, then, also, he’s on a one-year, $47 million (contract). Even if you offer him (in a trade), what are you, realistically, going to get back? I told them this too — you’re going to get some contracts you probably don’t want, and they’re going to go (chronologically) past his contract. You’ve really got to think about that. Are those players you’re going to get back, are they going to really help you? I said, talk to him. Whatever happened (this season), how can you make it better with Russell? How can you make it more comfortable? So they’ve got to figure all these things out. Take him out, take him to dinner or sit him down. How can this thing be better? ‘Cause if he’s going to be there, it’s got to be better. I guess whoever they name, that’s the first thing they’re going to have to do. And you can’t sit down once. You’re going to have to sit down for a week or two to try to figure that thing out.”
In a recent Los Angeles Times article, Lakers owner Jeanie Buss said she relies on Johnson for advice.
