February 11th, 2017
Magic is back with the Lakers, but only Jeanie Buss really knows what’s going to happen. However, since Magic has been named an advisor, he’s been making noise by telling the media that he wants to be the one “calling the shots”.
Since he was named an advisor, all I’ve heard are the Colin Cowherd’s of the world criticize the Lakers for being unable to turn the page from the past, and that it would be silly to let Magic be the one in charge of the Lakers Basketball Operations Department. For those people that think that, you are missing the point.
Magic Johnson has made nearly half a billion dollars since retiring from the NBA. He’s one of the most successful business men in the country. The man currently has too many successful businesses to count, yet it feels like he jumps from one business to the other in a very short amount of time. How is this possible? The answer is that he knows how to delegate, and how to surround himself with smart people that will make him successful. That’s why his businesses continue to run while he moves on to his next venture.
When Magic Johnson says he hopes he will be “calling the shots” with the Lakers Basketball Operations Department, most of you are envisioning that he’s going to be the teams’ Scout, General Manager, and Capologist all in one. That’s not the case. All Magic is saying is that just like with his businesses, he wants to have the final say. He’s smart enough to know that only by adding more smart people in the room, he will make these smarter final decisions.
Some of the smartest executives in the NBA (R.C. Buford, Travis Schlenk, Masai Ujiri, etc) are guys you’ve never heard of. However, if Magic is put in charge, his success will be determined by whether or not he can pluck those kinds of executives from other teams. Based on his track record of success, it seems like a pretty good bet he can pull something like this off. That’s not to say that Mitch Kupchak and Jim Buss won’t be with the Lakers anymore. They’ve done enough to prove their worth. They might just need more help given the challenges of the new collective bargaining agreement.
Just don’t doubt Magic Johnson. The man knows his strengths and his limitations. That self-awareness is actually what really makes everything he works on a success. That’s exactly why Jeanie Buss brought him back into the picture.