Magic Johnson Says Luke Walton Was The Reason He Left The Los Angeles Lakers

Magic Johnson is one of the league's most iconic players, and many remember him as the face of the Showtime Lakers dynasty. There's no doubt that he is one of the most recognizable figures associated with the NBA.

A majority of fans know Magic Johnson as an elite point guard with elite passing ability. However, later in his life, he took on a front-office role with the Los Angeles Lakers.

Magic Johnson Left The Los Angeles Lakers Because Of Luke Walton

After his playing career, Magic Johnson was at one point the president of basketball operations for the Los Angeles Lakers, leaving the team in 2019. On a recent episode of the Club Shay Shay podcast, Magic Johnson admitted that former Lakers coach Luke Walton was the reason he left his position with the team. (58:20)

Shannon Sharpe: Why did you step down (from the Lakers)?

Magic Johnson: "It's just I had to, I, I thought I had the power to do what I wanted to do.

"I wanted to fire Luke Walton."

Shannon Sharpe: You didn't feel that he was capable of doing the job?

Magic Johnson: "Oh, I knew he wasn't. And so I said, ‘Hey, we’ve got to let him go. He's not the right guy; he is not a great coach for the Laker team.’ And they wanted to keep him. So, I said, ‘okay.’ I already knew that I didn't want to fracture the great relationship I had with Jeanie Buss, because that's my sister. So, and instead of me sitting there - and I can never be this dude that just sits and not says what's on my mind - I said, ‘let me just exit. It's going to be best for everybody.’

"I felt some dudes wanted to be in the seat that I had. So, hey, you let 'em have it. You go ahead, you can have it, I'm out. And Jeanie and I are still great friends, so it was the best move and I'm glad I did it. 

Usually, the president of basketball operations gets full reign on hiring/firing a coach. It is easy to see why Magic Johnson wanted to leave the Los Angeles Lakers, as Luke Walton clearly didn't fit his vision of what a good coach looks like.

There is no question that it'd be interesting to see what sort of coach Magic Johnson would actually want coaching his team. He was right about Luke Walton not being a great coach for that iteration of the Lakers, and perhaps they could have done better had Magic Johnson gotten his wish and been able to fire Luke Walton.