From BillPlaschke: Magic Johnson was never all in, so now he's all gone
Los Angeles Times columnist Bill Plaschke reacts to Magic Johnson's decision to step down as the Lakers' president of basketball operations.
In the middle of his personal quest to return the Lakers to glory, with his star recruit LeBron James sitting across the hall amid the hope that more stars will be joining him this summer, Magic Johnson walked away. Why would a renowned business builder walk away from a project so terribly unfinished? Why would a camera-loving drama king turn his back on arguably one of the most famous sports jobs in the country? After courting him for a year, why would he walk out on the King?From Johnson's scattered reasons and ramblings, one could only construct theories that, taken together, probably come close to painting a full picture.
Johnson quit because he wanted to fire Luke Walton and owner Jeanie Buss disagreed. He quit because he didn't like the politics of the dysfunctional front office, expressly in regards to the actions of general manager Rob Pelinka, whom Johnson may have also wanted fired against Buss' wishes. He quit because he didn't like the rules restraints placed upon him by the league.
"Tomorrow, I would have to affect someone's livelihood and their life … and then I don't want to put her in the middle of us, even though she said, 'Hey, you do what you want to do,''' he said."I know she has great love for him, and great love for me.''
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