The Los Angeles Lakers have brought back a former face of the franchise to help the team get back on track. Magic Johnson is now an advisor to team president Jeanie Buss and will assist the team in a number of different areas.
With Johnson coming back to the franchise, many have wondered how it will impact the jobs and roles of Jim Buss and Mitch Kupchak. Johnson admitted he’s already talked to Kupchak and has planned an extensive meeting with the longtime general manager, via Mike Bresnahan of Spectrum Sportsnet:
Lakers adviser Magic Johnson told Spectrum SportsNet he talked to Mitch Kupchak + planned to have a two or three-hour meeting with him soon.
— Mike Bresnahan (@Mike_Bresnahan) February 3, 2017
Along with Johnson set to have a long meeting with Kupchak, the five-time NBA champion also will meet with Buss, who he’s openly criticized on more than one occasion, via Bresnahan:
Magic said he also planned to meet with Jim Buss soon. Extended part of Magic interview with @SpectrumSN to air at 6:30 on post-game show.
— Mike Bresnahan (@Mike_Bresnahan) February 3, 2017
At this point, it seems as though Johnson has been brought in strictly in an advisory role with the Lakers. Although the fate of Jim and Mitch remains up in the air, especially with Buss’ self-imposed deadline set to expire after the 2016-17 season, they’re still involved moving forward.
As for Luke Walton and company, the team will remain focused on the goal of improving the product on the floor while developing the young players like Brandon Ingram, Julius Randle, and D’Angelo Russell.
There’s a lot of work left to be done for this rebuilding franchise, and it’ll be interesting to see what the impact of Johnson’s presence and knowledge will be in the months to come.
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