Rumors

Pablo Torre Finds Out: As speakers like Tim Tebow, Joe Mazzulla and Magic Johnson distance themselves from Life Surge, other celebs — like former ESPN anchor Sage Steele — remain defiant. Steele talked "cancellation" onstage this month in Charlotte, as attendees keep pouring money into an alleged financial “scam.”

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DeRozan first experienced basketball as an artifact on videotape. His dad worked for the Compton Cable Company and had access to a dual-tape recording machine. He could insert a VHS tape in one slot and a blank tape in the other and copy the original. He brought home dozens of movies and TV shows and, most importantly, decade-old NBA games to show his son. DeMar sat on the living room floor, surrounded by stacks of tapes, entranced by Magic Johnson and Julius Erving and Alex English. They weren’t relics of the past to him. Somehow, in grainy footage, they felt immediate. Watching their faded glory days was as energizing as a live game. “You just see the passion,” he said. “It felt like research back then. Knowing your history of the game.”

Denver Post

Anthony Chiang: Giannis Antetokounmpo on Erik Spoelstra’s compliment: “I think I’m far away from Magic Johnson.”

Twitter

Giannis Antetokounmpo played in a Miami Heat jersey for the first time Saturday. For 14 minutes of preseason action in Quebec City. And that, plus a few weeks of practice time with his new team, was enough to draw a head-turning comparison from Heat coach Erik Spoelstra. “He makes great plays,” Spoelstra said after the Heat’s 129-105 win over the Kawhi Leonard-less Toronto Raptors. “We knew that about him. We faced him in the playoffs three times. But when you really see it every day in practice this week, you appreciate how brilliant of a playmaker that he can be. “With the size and the vision and his ability to put it on the numbers to shooters is really impressive. Pat (Riley) was at practice all week and the way he’s played with the ball in his hands and delivering the ball, he reminds all of us of a great big point guard that played for Pat back in the ’80s.”

New York Times

Jorge Sierra: Longest streaks of consecutive Top 6 MVP finishes: 14 years: LeBron James: 12: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar; 10: Bill Russell; 9: Larry Bird, Magic Johnson, BOB PETTIT. A true NBA great. May he rest in peace.

Twitter

Responding to an article written by The California Post’s Lakers beat reporter Khobi Price suggesting that Jerry Buss should be next to be honored with a statue, Magic Johnson took to social media to emphatically agree. “I 100% agree that Dr. Jerry Buss the greatest franchise owner in sports history and deserves a statue in front of Crypto arena soon in his honor,” Johnson wrote.

Clutch Points

Earvin Magic Johnson: “He’s not only the greatest owner in NBA history but he also has a strong argument for the greatest franchise owner in sports history.” Words from Khobi Price in his latest article in the @nypost - and he’s exactly right! I 100% agree that Dr. Jerry Buss is the greatest franchise owner in sports history and deserves a statues in front of Crypto arena soon in his honor!

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The statue will be unveiled April 9, 2027, before the Lakers' game against the Minnesota Timberwolves. .... Jackson will be the ninth member of the Lakers with a statue at Star Plaza outside Crypto.com Arena, joining Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Elgin Baylor, Chick Hearn, Magic Johnson, Pat Riley, Jerry West, O'Neal and Bryant (who has two). The statue was commissioned by the Lakers to be designed and created by Omri Amrany of Rotblatt Amrany Studio.

ESPN

And as it pertains to Magic Johnson, what is alleged here, and is what is being alleged illegal? Pablo Torre: What we are reporting is that Magic Johnson was the key aspect of how Mark Walter wound up loaning himself more than $300 million to enable the purchase of the Dodgers for a record price. And the reason I have been focusing on this is because Magic Johnson became a billionaire because of an insurance company called EquiTrust from his good friend and fellow Dodgers co-owner Mark Walter. But when Mark Walter needed to loan himself that more than $300 million, he also made an announcement that I'm selling this thing to Magic. And then, when he went and did it, that transaction had not yet closed. And so one can imagine that part of the whole deal here was, I need to be able to say that I'm not doing this Mark Walter to Mark Walter, and I need you, Magic, I need to wear you as a costume, according to my reporting, in order to avoid what would be a violation of securities law, because I'm not disclosing that this is just me and me doing a deal with myself.

pbs.org

Pablo Torre Finds Out: INVESTIGATION: Before Mark Walter sold the Lakers, he bought the Dodgers. Then came $350M via Magic Johnson — and hidden deals with each other. "Magic Johnson helped him out with the Dodgers deal," insider reveals. "They're trying to...put him on the map of being a billionaire."

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Jay Wagers: "Byron, you experienced the organization when Dr. Jerry Buss was alive. So, what did Jerry Buss create culturally that made the Lakers different from any other NBA franchise?" Byron Scott: "I think the main thing is he made us feel a very much of a sense of pride of wearing purple and gold, that it meant something different than being in any organization, that it was more of a family organization than most organizations that were either hobbies for some of the owners or that was their money maker. I think Jerry really wanted it to be more of a family-oriented organization and he made that point clear from day one. And he also hired the people to do their jobs. He hired Jerry West to be the general manager, make decisions. He didn't go behind his back or go in and say, 'No, no, we're not doing this, we're not doing that.' He hired these guys to do their job and he allowed them to do their jobs. He was just first of all, a very unique owner, still to me, one of the best owners in any sport that you can imagine. And he treated all of us the same. He treated every player the same. He treated Magic Johnson no different than he treated Wes Matthews. He would come in the locker room and he talked to everybody. He was one of the most humble owners that I've ever met."

YouTube

ClutchPoints: Lance Stephenson names his top 5 point guards of all time: Isiah Thomas, Jason Kidd, Magic Johnson, Steph Curry, Luka Doncic. Do you agree with his top 5?

x.com

Jorge Sierra: This Magic Johnson record is going to be hard to beat.

bsky.app

Johnson earned about $40 million during his NBA career. He built a successful business with theater, restaurant, and healthcare assets under the banner of Magic Johnson Enterprises. But when Forbes declared him a billionaire in 2023, it attributed most of his fortune to one investment: EquiTrust Life Insurance Company. EquiTrust was not a classic Magic Johnson business. It sells annuities and life insurance to ordinary Americans, then invests their premiums to meet promises that could stretch decades into the future. Johnson bought control of it from the same group that brought him into baseball: Guggenheim Partners, the firm co-founded and run by Dodgers and Lakers owner Mark Walter. Guggenheim continued managing EquiTrust’s investments after the sale.

Hunterbrook