Category: Magic Johnson

Commanders Owner Addresses Talk of Team's Potential Name Change
29 May 24 Jimm Sallivan

Commanders Owner Addresses Talk of Team’s Potential Name Change

Ever since Josh Harris's ownership group purchased the Washington Commanders from Daniel Snyder in 2023, there has been plenty of speculation about the new boss changing the franchise's team name.

The franchise, which was established in 1932, became the Washington Football Team in 2020. The name Commanders graced the team's jerseys beginning in '22 when Snyder was still calling the shots.

"As you would imagine, everyone has an opinion on the name. Some good, some bad, and some in the middle," owner Majorie Harris, the wife of Josh Harris, said to reporters Wednesday. "I think that we have a lot of work to do. That name issue is going to be on the side for now until we can get things going.

"Quite frankly, I had a whole day in the community. I kept referring to the team as the Commanders. You know what, it sounds pretty good to me. So for now, it's the Commanders."

Last summer, team co-owner Magic Johnson hinted that the Commanders' name could be headed under another rebrand with the new ownership group in town.

"I think everything's on the table, especially after this year," Johnson said on The Today Show in July. "We'll see where we are with the name, but I can't say [for sure] right now."

Per ESPN's John Keim, the organization was down to three finalists for the new team name—the Commanders, the RedWolves and the Washington, D.C. Football Club. The franchise also considered the Presidents, Brigade, Redhogs, Football Team, Armada and Defenders.

For now, though, it appears rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels will begin his NFL career wearing a Commanders jersey.

Josh Harris, Magic Johnson, Majorie Harris, NFL, Washington Commanders
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Magic Johnson Apologizes to Fans for Wrongly Placing Blame on Lakers' Struggles
2 May 24 Jimm Sallivan

Magic Johnson Apologizes to Fans for Wrongly Placing Blame on Lakers’ Struggles

Magic Johnson regrets a social media post he sent to the internet shortly after the Los Angeles Lakers were eliminated by the Denver Nuggets in the first round of the NBA playoffs.

"Laker Nation, I have to apologize to the Lakers organization," Johnson posted to X, formerly Twitter, on Wednesday. "It was injuries that plagued the Lakers this season, not load management."

The content on Johnson's social media accounts are known to be almost comically vanilla, but he put that aside Tuesday—the day after the Lakers' season ended—and posted a pair of spicy takes.

Johnson blamed load management for the reason Los Angeles finished with the Western Conference's No. 7 seed and claimed the Nuggets were both mentally and physically tougher in their playoff series.

The Lakers had many issues during the 2023-24 NBA season, but load management probably wasn't a top factor in their struggles. Los Angeles' most common starting five—LeBron James, Anthony Davis, D'Angelo Russell, Austin Reaves and Taurean Prince—all played at least 71 regular-season games.

James dealt with calf and ankle issues and missed 11 games. Role player Jarred Vanderbilt missed the last three months with a foot injury, and Rui Hachimura battled calf issues at times. But Davis played a career-high 76 games, as did Russell—his most since 2018-19—and Reaves played all 82 for the first time in his career.

If it wasn't load management or injury issues that caused the team to fall short of expectations, the Lakers just simply weren't good enough in 2023-24.

Denver Nuggets, Los Angeles Lakers, Magic Johnson
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Magic Johnson Roasted for Blaming Lakers’ Loss on Something That Didn’t Happen
30 Apr 24 Jimm Sallivan

Magic Johnson Roasted for Blaming Lakers’ Loss on Something That Didn’t Happen

The Los Angeles Lakers were eliminated from the playoffs by the Denver Nuggets in five games after losing Monday night's Game 5. There are many reasons the Lakers lost the series (most of them start with "Jamal Murray") but a franchise legend believes there was one reason above all for the early playoff exit— load management.

Yes, you read that right. Magic Johnson made the case that the Lakers are going home early because of load management down the stretch of the season, a thought he expressed on X, as he is wont to do. The primary reasoning was that they could have avoided the Nuggets in the first round if they had posted a better regular season record.

The problem with this logic is that the Lakers didn't really load manage this season as we've come to understand the concept. LeBron James was dealing with a nagging ankle injury for much of the year post-All Star break but he only missed three games after March 1. Anthony Davis only missed two games in that same time period. One came against the Golden State Warriors, a fellow play-in team, but Davis wasn't out for rest, he was forced to sit because he took a shot to the head the previous evening.

There are many times where NBA teams can and should be criticized for prioritizing load management over winning games. This was not one of those times. Six different Lakers played over 70 games this season. Gabe Vincent and Jarred Vanderbilt were both seriously injured for most of the year. Los Angeles was plagued with many other problems but load management, objectively, was not one of them.

Johnson, predictably, was roasted for his take.

Load management or no, the Lakers are done for the season and major changes appear on the horizon.

Denver Nuggets, Los Angeles Lakers, Magic Johnson, NBA
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