The NBA Finals are set, as Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs — in his first playoff run — will face Jalen Brunson and the New York Knicks in a 1999 rematch. Wembanyama led the Spurs past the defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder in the Western Conference Finals, earning him the Magic Johnson MVP trophy.
The NBA started giving out a conference finals MVP in 2022, naming the West’s after Johnson — the Los Angeles Lakers legend — and the East’s after his biggest rival, Boston Celtics legend Larry Bird. Johnson took to social media to congratulate Wembanyama for becoming the fifth winner of his trophy after an incredible seven-game series.
I want to congratulate Victor Wembanyama on winning the Earvin “Magic” Johnson Trophy as the new Western Conference Finals MVP! https://t.co/eojO0GqzwS
— Earvin Magic Johnson (@MagicJohnson) May 31, 2026
Wembanyama is having a special campaign, winning Defensive Player of the Year, getting named to both the All-NBA and All-Defensive First Teams and now receiving the Johnson trophy en route to his first NBA Finals. He’s doing all of this at age 22 in his third NBA season, an absolutely terrifying thought for the rest of the league.
Johnson — who was also once a transcendent young talent helping lead his team to the Finals as a rookie — has always been great about recognizing and celebrating greatness, exactly as he does by congratulating Wembanyama here. While his allegiance has always been to the Lakers, that doesn’t stop him from crediting the Spurs superstar.
DeMar DeRozan plays start, bench, cut including Magic Johnson
Sacramento Kings forward DeMar DeRozan recently joined Richard Jefferson to discuss all sorts of topics, and one of them was playing the game “Start, Bench, Cut,” which asks people to rank three things in the same category from best to worst. Jefferson asked DeRozan, an L.A. native, specifically about Los Angeles-related topics.
One of them was Lakers greats, with Jefferson putting Johnson against Kobe Bryant and LeBron James. DeRozan started Johnson, benched Bryant and cut James. In terms of all-time great Lakers, it is likely unanimous that James would be the one getting cut, as he has spent eight years with the franchise compared to Johnson and Bryant’s entire NBA careers.
However, fans would likely be split on Johnson or Bryant getting the starting nod. DeRozan goes with Johnson, a completely fair answer given that he is the player that truly put the Lakers on the map and altered the trajectory of both the franchise and the league as a whole.
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