Magic Johnson is one of the best players in history. He is one of the three players who had the biggest contribution to making the NBA what it is today. His accolades on the court are just as impressive. Magic won 5 championships, 3 Finals MVPs, and 3 MVPs throughout his career and now has the Western Conference Finals MVP trophy named after him.
However, Magic’s career was cut a little short after he was diagnosed with HIV in the early 90s. This has had an influence on where he falls on people’s all-time lists, and his case to be considered the greatest of all time also took a hit. NBA analyst Nick Wright has given his take on the matter, saying that there are just 3 players greater than Johnson in NBA history.
(starts at 18:12 minutes)
“Magic’s career, I just want to reiterate the bold points. He had 12 years before he had to retire due to HIV. It was during one of the most competitive eras in NBA history, the 1980s, an era where now, obviously, Magic’s older than Michael – came in before Michael – but where Michael couldn’t sniff a championship, and Magic Johnson won five.
“He went to the finals nine times. He played for 12 years. Those nine years, he won league MVP three times, finished second in league MVP voting three time, and came in third three times. So, 75 percent of his healthy years, he was a top three player in the sport.
“Putting anyone other than Kareem, Michael and LeBron (James) ahead of Magic is so wantonly disrespectful and insane. If Magic hadn’t been diagnosed with HIV, he would have, I think, finished his career with a legitimate GOAT case.”
There are a lot of merits to Wright’s argument in this regard. It’s hard to deny how good Johnson was during his NBA career. His rival Larry Bird often gets put above him, and he arguably had the higher peak, but Magic has more achievements throughout his career. There cannot be a lot of objectivity in these lists, but most people would agree with Magic Johnson being Top 5 all-time.
