Magic Johnson told Roy Firestone on Friday's "Up Close"
special that he would "love" to own the Lakers. Johnson: "I
would love to do that, but that's going to take me another
... four to five years to be in that position, to have that
much money. ... If I'm given that opportunity, yes I will."
Johnson, on an alternative to ownership: "If I don't own a
team, what I would really like is to have [NBA Commissioner]
David Stern's job. I'm not kidding. I know I could do it"
(ESPN, 5/21). On "NBA Showtime," NBC's Isiah Thomas floated
Johnson as the next Lakers coach: "I think this is the team
to give to Magic Johnson. ... I believe Magic, with this
team can make a difference." Interviewed by Ahmad Rashad
during yesterday's Spurs-Lakers Game Four, Johnson said,
"I've never been really interested in coaching. But if I
was coaching and I had this team, I'd still be coaching."
But he added, "I don't want to start nothing" ("NBA on NBC,"
5/23). Johnson tells USA TODAY's Greg Boeck the Lakers
should be "embarrassed" by their playoff performance. Asked
what would happen if Kurt Rambis doesn't return: "I want to
see what happens. I'm a Laker man" (USA TODAY, 5/24).
