LOS ANGELES: Saying Magic Johnson had talked him into joining the Lakers so they can make it “Showtime” once again just like old times, LeBron James has expressed disappointment by Johnson’s reported surprise and abrupt decision to quit as the president of basketball operations for the NBA’s Los Angeles Lakers last month.
James made comments in the latest episode of his HBO television show “The Shop” that features him sitting in a barbershop chair and talking informally with friends. The episode aired on Saturday but was taped on April 11, two days after retired Lakers playing legend Johnson’s sudden exit, reported The Manila Times, citing a dispatch from the international French news agency, Agence France Presse (AFP).
The report said it was Johnson who played a key role in convincing James to leave the Cleveland Cavaliers last year to be part with the Lakers in hopes of leading them back to glory days such as eras with Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal or the “Showtime” era featuring Johnson, the report further said.
“I came here to be a part of the Lakers organization, having a conversation with Magic and really kind of breaking it down and saying how we was going to make this ‘Showtime’ again, and I wanted to be part of that process,” AFP quoted James as saying during the episode.
“So, it was just weird for him to just be like ‘I’m out of here’ and not even have no like, ‘Hey ‘Bron, kiss my (expletive). I’m out of here.’
“I would’ve been OK with that. ‘Hey ‘Bron, it’s Magic. Kiss my (expletive). I’m gone.’ Not even that.”
Johnson announced his choice in an impromptu news conference without first telling many in the Lakers organization, including owner Jeanie Buss, Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka and James, according to the report.
