Michael Jordan Thought Magic Johnson’s Lakers Weren’t As Tough as Anticipated

Michael Jordan and Magic Johnson are definitely two of the greatest players in the NBA. Despite having retired from a sport a while back, they still stand apart due to their attributes in the game, as well as their huge legacies. They proved their worth more times than one can imagine.

They both had their own eras which often makes one wonder who was the better player in his prime. Both MJ’s open a fair debate as to who is the greatest player of all time.

The duo dominated their respective time in the NBA in their prime. Magic Johnson was at the peak of his career in the 80s and dominated with his Lakers side. Whereas Michael Jordan dominated the 90s with the Chicago Bulls winning 2 three-peats in the decade.

Michael Jordan talks about the 1991 NBA finals

Michael Jordan entered the NBA when Magic Johnson was in his prime and arguably the best at the time. Although their head-to-head record was fairly even, Jordan still had a slight edge. Jordan had the record of 7-6 against Johnson. More importantly, Michael won his first NBA Championship after beating Magic’s Lakers.

The Chicago Bulls won the final 4-1 and Michael Jordan thought that the first loss in the finals gave them the motivation to win the next 4 to clinch the championship.

Michael said in the interview with Ahmad Rashad, “After the game if you can ever have moral victory from a loss then that was a moral victory for us, because they weren’t as tough as we anticipated.” referring to the fact that Johnson’s LA Lakers had just sneaked up a narrow victory winning 93-91.

Jordan continued, “blew them out, came out, all we needed to do was calm down and keep our poise and play the game of basketball.” Talking about how Chicago Bulls swept LA Lakers in the second game winning convincingly 107-86 to tie the finals and then going on to win the next 3 to make it 4-1 and grab the championship.

Also Read: Michael Jordan shares a special moment with Luka Doncic and Karl Anthony Towns.

From one prime to another!

The 1991 NBA finals was the first of six championships that Michael Jordan went on to win. It was incidentally also the last finals appearance for Magic Johnson. He decided to retire after the 1990-1991 season. From Johnson’s 80s, we entered into Jordan’s 90s where he created himself a legend just like the other MJ in the preceding decade. 

It was almost poetic and seemed like the passing of a torch as one MJ retired and the other one entered his prime. Michael Jordan and Magic Johnson changed the way people looked at basketball at the time and the world also knew them for their bigger-than-life persona.

Greatness recognizes Greatness!

At the recently concluded NBA All-Stars game, fans saw and cherished the beautiful moment between the two legends. Magic posted it on his Twitter and we, the fans, all rejoiced. 

The debate might still go on to decide who the GOAT is, but that doesn’t mean that any player had a lesser influence than the other. Almost all the players in the modern NBA idolized one of the two before making it to the NBA. Both Michael Jordan and Magic Johnson changed the fate of the NBA and for which everyone remains grateful. Both MJs would certainly be coined as being the synonym of greatness. 

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