Los Angeles Lakers great Magic Johnson recently applauded the efforts by Luka Doncic. After being criticized for his physical shape, Doncic has dropped weight since the Lakers were eliminated by the Minnesota Timberwolves in the Western Conference playoffs.
During an appearance on ESPN’s “Get Up,” Johnson praised Doncic for the offseason effort.
“They have to be in better conditioning to win an NBA championship,” Johnson said. “I’m glad that Luka listened to JJ. Look at him, he looks great right now and the rest of the Lakers have to do the same.”
.@MagicJohnson has a message for Luka Doncic
“It’s great what you did in Dallas. But the difference is, in Los Angeles, we expect championships. And we expect our superstars to lead us to a championship. LeBron has already done that. Now we want Luka to do the same thing.” pic.twitter.com/SQocwLswnw
— Get Up (@GetUpESPN) June 12, 2025
Johnson also said it’s time for Doncic to do what other Lakers greats have done in the past: win a championship. Many felt the Lakers were on pace to do that this season but they were upset by the Timberwolves.
“It’s great what you did in Dallas,” Johnson said of Doncic. “But the difference is, in Los Angeles, we expect championships. And we expect our superstars to lead us to a championship. LeBron [James] has already done that. Now we want Luka to do the same thing.”
MJ WAS STILL A COMPETITOR AS AN OWNER
NBA Hall of Famer Michael Jordan was known as one of the most competitive players in league history. He was just as fierce as an owner. Jordan had majority ownership of the Charlotte Bobcats/Hornets from 2010-23 but treated it like his days as a player.
“MJ as an owner is just how he is as a player,” former Charlotte guard Raymond Felton said on the Podcast P with Paul George. “He was super competitive. He hated to lose. He came to the locker room many times to tell us how he felt.”
Felton told a story of how Jordan used to routinely compete against players in practice. Felton said Jordan never lost.
“It was me, him, Jeff McInnis, Gerald Wallace, [Jason Richardson],” Felton said. “We played 1-on-1 against MJ. And when I tell you he was frying us … he was frying us. And was talking crazy to us, too. We scored on him but he was winning the games.”