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Point Guard: Earvin “Magic” Johnson
Magic Johnson’s Showtime Lakers served as the perfect contrast for the gritty team play of Larry Bird and his Boston Celtics. With Magic flashing his trademark smile, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, James Worthy, Byron Scott, and Michael Cooper were all too happy to run the floor, fill the lanes, and catch crisp passes that led to easy transition buckets. At point guard, Magic could completely dominate the flow of the game without even scoring.
As a 20-year-old kid, he burnished his image as one of the greatest winners in all of sports. As a rookie, Johnson put together one of the most memorable postseason performances of all time to close out the Philadelphia 76ers in the Game 6 Finals clincher. While playing all five positions, Magic torched Philadelphia for 42 points, 15 rebounds, 7 assists, and 1 MVP award. From there, he was to collect four more championship trophies for the city of Los Angeles against the 76ers, Celtics, and Bad Boy-era Pistons.
Starting from his days as a Michigan State star, Magic was always in rare form against rival Larry Bird. His sweeping hook shot across the lane to seal a Finals victory on the Boston parquet hardwood will forever remain burnished as part of NBA lore.