Jeanie Buss has brought Magic Johnson back into the room, and everything on the Lakers suddenly looks new again.
Johnson was hired as an advisor to Buss on Thursday in an announcement designed to begin the process of reshaping the upper reaches of a basketball operation that has been burdened by mistakes and grown stagnant with failure.
Since the death of legendary owner Jerry Buss nearly four years ago, the Lakers have been anything but Magic, but with the arrival of Johnson, that is all about to change.
Management will change. The free-agent climate will change. The number of kids on the roster will change. Who knows, maybe even some of their worst records in franchise history will change.
It’s not that Johnson has the proven expertise to sign or trade or shape an NBA roster. It’s that he has the presence, and now the power, to clear the path for somebody who does.
Certainly, he’s impulsive in his thoughts, sometimes reckless in his words, and Johnson even surrendered his honorary Lakers vice president post last summer because his statements were causing so much confusion. He has had little impact as part of the Dodgers ownership team, is often distracted by his other business interests, and never seems to be in one place for more than five minutes.
But make no mistake. His heart has always been with the Lakers, his home has always been with the Lakers, and while he might not be the answer, he certainly should know how to find it and nurture it.
Johnson was hired as an advisor to Buss on Thursday in an announcement designed to begin the process of reshaping the upper reaches of a basketball operation that has been burdened by mistakes and grown stagnant with failure.
Since the death of legendary owner Jerry Buss nearly four years ago, the Lakers have been anything but Magic, but with the arrival of Johnson, that is all about to change.
Management will change. The free-agent climate will change. The number of kids on the roster will change. Who knows, maybe even some of their worst records in franchise history will change.
It’s not that Johnson has the proven expertise to sign or trade or shape an NBA roster. It’s that he has the presence, and now the power, to clear the path for somebody who does.
Certainly, he’s impulsive in his thoughts, sometimes reckless in his words, and Johnson even surrendered his honorary Lakers vice president post last summer because his statements were causing so much confusion. He has had little impact as part of the Dodgers ownership team, is often distracted by his other business interests, and never seems to be in one place for more than five minutes.
But make no mistake. His heart has always been with the Lakers, his home has always been with the Lakers, and while he might not be the answer, he certainly should know how to find it and nurture it.
