They say you can’t bottle lightning—but this weekend, lightning struck twice in L.A. As the city honored its heroes, a different kind of salute was unfolding off the radar: hushed arrivals in Magic Johnson’s abode in Bel Air, familiar laughter echoing through manicured hedges, and the unmistakable electricity of a dynasty reuniting.
For years, the Lakers and Celtics were tied at 17 championships. But in 2024, Boston edged ahead with their 18th. Even so, let’s be real—nothing shines quite like Showtime. The big shift came in 1979, when Jerry Buss bought the team from Jack Kent Cooke. Before that, the Lakers were mostly just a good team with potential. Buss changed the script. With Magic running the show and that whole Showtime energy, the Lakers became bigger than basketball—they felt like Hollywood. Fast breaks, no-look passes, big smiles, and even bigger personalities. The energy is what made L.A. a magnet for legends like Kobe, Shaq, and later, LeBron.
That spirit was alive again this Memorial Day, when the Showtime legends gathered at Magic and Cookie Johnson’s house. Cookie stayed home, yet his presence was felt in every laugh. Michael Cooper, James Worthy, AC Green, Norm Nixon, and Kurt Rambis all came together to celebrate the era they helped define. Worthy posted, “Memorial Day w my some of my Showtime Lakers fam at Magic’s party,” and Cooper added, “Getting together again… amazing time at the Johnson’s house!” More than a reunion, it served as a living tribute to the dynasty they built.
The first big move came in 1975, when Jack Kent Cooke traded four players just to get one: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. That was the first domino. Then came Norm Nixon and Jamaal Wilkes, steady pieces added in ‘77. Still, the team couldn’t quite break through. Then 1979 hit like a Hollywood script: Buss bought the Lakers, Jerry West moved upstairs, and the franchise won the lottery… literally. That No. 1 pick? A 6’9” point guard with a smile and vision nobody had seen before. Earvin “Magic” Johnson walked in, and the lights in L.A. got a little brighter.
From that moment, Showtime exploded. Magic ran the floor like a conductor, Kareem kept dropping skyhooks, and Michael Cooper—yeah, the same guy nobody expected anything from—turned into a defensive nightmare. Then Pat Riley, the Armani-wearing sideline general, took over. The Lakers didn’t just win—they danced, glided, and turned basketball into entertainment. Five titles, nine Finals, and enough unforgettable moments to fill a movie reel. And through it all, they didn’t just build a dynasty—they built a vibe. Showtime wasn’t just a team. It was a movement. And that movement had its own ups and downs.
Did Winning Time get Norm Nixon vs. Magic Johnson wrong?
Alright, pull up a chair for this one—because the story of Norm Nixon and Magic Johnson, especially how it’s portrayed on Winning Time, is layered, dramatic, and honestly… pretty misunderstood. The show makes it look like these two were on the verge of throwing hands every other day. There’s even a scene where Michael Cooper has to break up a fight. But according to Norm Nixon himself? That was all for TV. When asked if it really happened, Nixon said flat out, as reported by Basketball Network, “No. Not even close.” And his son DeVaughn, who actually plays Nixon on Winning Time, cleared the air perfectly: “My dad and Magic were cool… There was competition, but it was respectful.”
Was there tension? Absolutely. You had an established All-Star in Nixon and a flashy No. 1 pick in Magic, both trying to run the show. Naturally, that’s going to create some heat. But hate? Not really. Lakers guard Michael Cooper said, “And we all knew Norman was really jealous.” Cooper added that the friction between Johnson and Nixon went “way beyond basketball.”
They were close friends but became fiercely competitive about basketball—and even their romantic lives. Lakers guard Ron Carter chimed in: “[Nixon] saw everything Magic did as a competition. For the ball. For playing time. For women. Who’s the coolest? Who’s the smartest? Me and [Cooper] would sit back and just watch.” The respect was there, but so was this weird, electric tension.
The real drama wasn’t Magic—it was Jerry West. Everyone agreed West was relentless with Nixon, as reported by Sporting News. Adrian Dantley was called Nixon West’s “whipping boy.” Journalist Jeff Pearlman wrote that West would tear into Nixon, labeling him “soft,” a “whiner,” and even a “pretty boy.” West himself admitted, “Even to this day, I’m not sure Norm doesn’t think of me as the anti-Christ.”
Things took a messy turn in 1981 when Nixon was quoted as saying, “Fifteen years from now, everyone will have forgotten Magic.” That line? It stuck. Nixon later said he was misquoted, but it didn’t matter—Magic heard it, and so did the locker room. The tension boiled over so much that Pat Riley said the team basically exploded after a playoff game. Eventually, Jerry Buss asked Magic if they could fix things or if a trade should be considered. Magic said they could talk. They did. But the writing was already on the wall. By 1983, Nixon was traded, closing that complicated chapter of Lakers history.
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