MVPs: 3. Finals MVPs: 3. All-NBA 1st Team: 9. 2nd Team: 1. All Star: 12. MVP: 2.
Defensive POY: 0. All-Defense Team: 0.
Assists Champ: 4. Steals Champ: 2.
Career Averages: 19 PPG/ 7 RPG/ 11 APG/ 1.9 SPG/ .4 BPG/ .533 eFG%/ .848 FT%.
Best Season: 24/ 6/ 12/ 1.7/ .5/ .525/ .848 (1986-87).
Postseason Averages: 19 PPG/ 8 RPG/ 12 APG/ 1.9 SPG/ .3 BPG/ .516 eFG%/ .838 FT%.
Best Postseason: 22/ 8/ 12/ 1.7/ .4/ .542/ .831 (1987).
Championships: 5 (#1 player on 4, #2 player on 1). Runner-ups: 4 (#1 player on all 4).
Why he's below Kareem Abdul-Jabbar: They played together for 10 seasons, and Magic was better for 8 of those seasons... But that was the second phase of Kareem's career. Kareem had a decade as the best player in the league before becoming one of the most successful #2's of all time. Magic never had a second phase to his career; maybe we'd be talking about him as a top-3 player if he hadn't contracted HIV.
Why he's above the rest: Magic Johnson was the engine that made the Showtime Lakers run to 7 finals and 5 championships in his first 9 seasons. He is the only player in NBA history to win Finals MVP in his rookie season, scoring 42 points with 15 rebounds and 7 assists in a legendary game 6. For most players, their career would be all downhill from there, but Magic only got better. He finished top-3 in MVP voting a record 9 seasons in a row (winning 3 times) and is the all-time leader in assists per game.
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