Courtside
Anthony L. Cuaycong
To no one’s surprise, Magic Johnson was beside himself yesterday while ruminating on the immediate future of the Lakers. Along with general manager Rob Pelinka, he held court at the Toyota Sports Center for the formal introduction of newest recruit Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, and he couldn’t help but dream big in his unique gregarious style. Without any need for prompting, he described the 2013 eighth overall pick as “a special two-guard that can play both sides of the ball [who] also has a high basketball IQ… He can guard the one position, the two position, the three position. Man, I should have been playing with him myself.”
How big was Johnson on Caldwell-Pope, whom the Lakers grabbed from free agency after the Pistons renounced their rights to him? Big enough, at least, to compare him to defensive great Michael Cooper. And the Hall of Famer didn’t stop there. Noting the presence of Lonzo Ball, Brandon Ingram, Thomas Hart, and Josh Bryant at the press conference, he pronounced the 2017-2018 season as must-see fare for hoops fans. “I would not want to miss a Laker game this season because it’s going to be exciting every single night.”
Later at the practice facility, Johnson expounded on his expectations for the Lakers, who have not been close to making the playoffs since 2013. “We want to run, run, run, run, run,” he said. “I would love to see [Caldwell-Pope] on one wing. [Last year’s second overall pick Ingram] on the other. [This year’s second overall pick and Summer League Most Valuable Player] Ball in the middle. [2014 seventh overall pick] Julius [Randle] trailing. [Former All-Star Brook] Lopez trailing after that. It is going to be awesome.”
Needless to say, Johnson reserved high praise for Ball. “Lonzo is special, no question about it, because he makes everyone better. He does something you can’t teach. He gives you a scoring pass. Very few point guards in the league can do that.” As to whether the braggadocio of father LaVar and the continued references to his own game unduly add to the player’s burden, he noted: “Hey, he’s been living in this city his whole life. In high school, won a state championship. When he went to UCLA, everybody said he better perform. He performed. Now he gets to play for his favorite team in his hometown. So there’s pressure that comes with that. But the great ones eat pressure for breakfast, right? He is a guy that just plays his game. Nothing is going to change.”
Certainly, there remains skepticism on whether the Lakers have the necessary tools to make the postseason in the highly competitive West. Improving on a 26-56 slate that had them next to last in the conference is one thing. Going an estimated 15 wins better in order to make a run at the last playoff slot is another. Don’t tell Johnson that, though. And while his intrinsically positive nature makes for rose-colored assessments, he’s right to contend that they’ll be just as compelling to watch as the acknowledged elite.
Anthony L. Cuaycong has been writing Courtside since BusinessWorld introduced a Sports section in 1994. He is the Senior Vice-President and General Manager of Basic Energy Corp.
