With the regular season coming to a close, the Los Angeles Lakers front office will be undergoing some changes.
Before Tuesday’s game against the Portland Trail Blazers, Magic Johnson spoke to the media and announced that he would step down from his position as president of basketball operations for the Lakers. A short time later, the Lakers released a statement about Johnson’s decision. Via NBA.com/Lakers:
There is no greater Los Angeles Laker than Earvin Johnson. We are deeply grateful to Magic for all that he has done for our franchise – as a player, an ambassador and an executive.
We thank him for his work these past two years as our President of Basketball Operations and wish him, Cookie, Andre, EJ and Elisa all the best with their next steps. He will always be not only a Lakers icon, but our family.
As we begin the process of moving forward, we will work in a measured and methodical fashion to make the right moves for the future of our organization.
Lakers owner Jeanie Buss — who, according to Johnson, had no idea he was planning to step down — also sent out a message on Twitter in the aftermath.
Earvin, I loved working side by side with you. You’ve brought us a long way. We will continue the journey. We love you
