“He Liked Dolls and to Play Dress-Up”: Magic Johnson Admits Having a Hard Time Accepting Son EJ’s Reality

Magic Johnson is one of the best players ever to grace the basketball court. His legacy with the Lakers was unmatched and only beaten by Michael Jordan. Magic started his NBA career in 1979. He played his first game with the Lakers on October 12. The Lakers drafted Johnson as their first pick. He stayed in Los Angeles all his career.

In Magic’s 13 years in the NBA, he won practically everything more than once. He won 5 NBA championships, 3 MVPs, 3 Finals MVPs, 2-time steals champion, and 4-time assist champion, and a 12-time All-Star inclusion.

The life of Magic Johnson deserved a story being narrated. The documentary on Apple TV+ is set to debut on April 22. Apart from his career, the series will also focus on his early life, the start of his career, his rise to legendary status, and his family.

ALSO READ: Magic talks about racism.

Magic recently revealed a more important aspect of the family for him was regarding his son. His son changed his outlook on life and the world.

Magic Johnson reveals how he came to terms with his son’s sexuality

It is not something hidden or a secret that during the 70s or 80s there was not as much acceptance regarding people’s sexuality. However, the times have changed over the past two decades and people are more open-minded about different genders, races, and sexualities. However, the transition for Magic was not easy.

In a new interview with Variety ahead of the April 22 release of “They Call Me Magic,” an Apple TV Plus docuseries that covers his life and career, Johnson revealed that he initially struggled to come to terms with his son’s sexual orientation.

WATCH THIS STORY: Other must watch documentaries like Magic’s.

“When you grow up in team sports, you’re thinking, ‘Is he gonna play sports?’” Johnson says. “And then when I saw that he liked dolls and to play dress-up… ‘What are you doing?’”

“He’s not somebody who works great being cornered or surprised,” says EJ, now 29. “It was a lot for him to swallow. A lot of going back and forth.”

They argued about how EJ presented himself at home the summer before he went to college. But Magic accepted it with time and their relationship as a father and son obviously became even better.

“I had only been gone for two months,” EJ says. “He picked me up at my dorm and I was like, ‘Oh, whatever, hey.’ And he hugged me so hard — he was, like, squeezing all the air out of me. That’s when I knew, there’s nothing but love here.”

No matter what, Magic obviously only had love for his son.