Magic Johnson Wanted To Be Traded, But Why?

Magic Johnson, a Lakers star, publicly demanded a trade from the Los Angeles Lakers on November 18, 1981, just over a year after winning an NBA championship in his rookie year. Johnson was fed up with head coach Paul Westhead, who preferred to run the offense through Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Rumors swirled that Buss had encouraged Johnson to request a trade to justify the firing, particularly because this request came on the same night that Magic openly defied Westhead.

In June 1981, Lakers owner Jerry Buss announced that Magic Johnson had signed a 25-year, $25 million contract, the longest and richest deal in sports history. After a 26-point loss to the San Antonio Spurs, Johnson admitted to teammate Michael Cooper that he wasn’t having fun and that a change was needed. That conversation prompted the disgruntled star to ask Westhead to implement a fast-paced offense, while Westhead wanted to continue running the offense through Abdul-Jabbar.

After the Lakers’ 113-110 win over the Jazz, Johnson revealed that he was going to speak with team owner Jerry Buss about a trade. In real life, Johnson’s impromptu trade request happened on November 18, 1981, after a game against the Utah Jazz. Within twenty-four hours, coach Paul Westhead was fired. Although Buss insisted Westhead’s dismissal wasn’t due to Magic’s issues, Johnson was mostly requesting the trade for an excuse to fire Westhead and replace him with Jerry West and Pat Riley. West’s answer, Johnson said, was a definitive no.

When asked about the Knicks, Johnson was intrigued but said a deal would be hard to come by. In 2021, Tim van Straten joined Sportscasting from the Los Angeles Lakers.