Magic Johnson He couldn't fly like Michael Jordan, but aside for that he was the perfect basketball player and his teams were the most enjoyable to watch. He was the orchestra director of the Lakers Showtime team and the point guard of the best basketball team ever, the 1992 Dream Team. He could score, rebound and his passing skills left fans and rivals with their mouths open every game. Magic and Larry Bird were the center of a decade dominated by the Lakers/Celtics rivalry and an unforgettable basketball.

Full Name: Earvin Johnson Jr.

Nicknames: "Magic"

Position: Point guard

Jersey Number: 32

Birth date: August 14, 1959

Place of Birth: Lansing, MI, USA

Plays: Right-handed

Teams: Los Angeles Lakers (1979-80 / 1990-91 and 1995-95)

NBA Seasons: 13

Team Titles won:

NBA Championships: 5 - 1979-80, 1981-82, 1984-85, 1986-87, 1987-88
Olympic Gold Medals: 1 - Barcelona 1992

Personal Titles and Awards:

NBA Regular Season MVP: 3 - 1986-87, 1988-89, 1989-90
NBA Finals MVP: 3 - 1980, 1982, 1987
NBA All-Star Game MVP: 2 - 1990, 1992
All NBA First Team: 9 - 1982-83 / 1990-91
NBA leader in assists: 4 - 1982-83, 1983-84, 1985-86, 1986-87
NBA leader in steals: 2 - 1980-81, 1981-82
Selected for NBA All-Star Game: 12 - 1980, 1982 / 92
One of 50 Greatest Players in NBA History (1996)
Inducted into Hall of Fame as Player in 2002

Career highlights:
1979 - Three years before the 1979 NBA draft, the Lakers had obtain this year's first round pick from New Orleans Jazz. With an ugly 1978-79 season, the Jazz transformed the pick in the first pick overall. The Lakers used it to get Magic and the rest is history.

1980 - In game 5 of the NBA finals, Lakers top scorer Kareem Abdul-Jabbar injured his ankle and was sidelined for game 6. The 20-year old point guard Magic Johnson had the size to replace him... and the talent. Magic made a legendary performance with 42 points, 15 rebounds, 7 assists and 3 steals to give the Lakers the championship and became the first rookie ever to get the Finals MVP.

1985 - Guided by Magic's performance in the playoffs (17.5 points, 7.1 rebounds and 15.2 assists) and by Abdul-Jabbar's MVP performance in the finals, the Lakers finally got a championship with the Celtics as the other finalist. The Celtics had won their previous 8 finals against the Lakers. Jerry West, at that moment the Lakers General Manager, surely enjoyed it, he lost 6 finals in the hands of the legendary Red Auerbach's Celtics.

1987 - The Boston Garden and another NBA Finals against the Celtics were the witnesses of another magic moment: The winning basket of game 4, also known as the "baby-hook" shot. Magic's own version of Abdul-Jabbar sky hook in front of the opposition of the arms of three Hall of Famers, Larry Bird, Kevin McHale, and Robert Parish.

Best Websites: Magic Johnson profile, Michael Jordan vs. Magic Johnson

Other interesting information: Magic Johnson shocked the basketball world before the 1991-92 NBA season with the announcement of his retirement because he had tested positive for HIV virus. He reappeared in the All-star game that season and won the MVP. Later he was a member of the 1992 Dream Team in Barcelona, made a 16-game interim replacement as a coach for the Lakers in 1994 and made a final comeback as a player in the 1995-96 season and playoffs.

Magic currently enjoys his good health and his businessman profession. Among other activities he owns a chain of theaters in minority neighborhoods in Los Angeles and other cities and is a minority owner of the Lakers where he is also a vice president.