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The Lakers will be looking a lot different next season, and not just on the court.
With Mark Walter owning the Lakers and the Dodgers, that connection is merging the two franchises in interesting ways. Los Angeles has a new President of Business Operations with Lon Rosen taking over for Tim Harris, who held that role for decades.
Rosen worked with the Dodgers as an Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer since 2012.
A person who already has a deep connection with each franchise is Magic Johnson. He is a minority owner with the Dodgers, clearly has ties to the Lakers and Rosen was his agent in the 80s.
Will we be seeing Magic making a comeback to the front office?
In an article by Dave McMenamin of ESPN, Rosen made it clear that Magic will not have a job with the team.
“Earvin is one of the most unique individuals I’ve known in my life, and he’s one of my closest friends,” Rosen said. “I’ve known him since we were both 19. Earvin’s involved with all types of things. He owns football teams, baseball teams, soccer teams, insurance companies, a lot of things. He’s always going to have some type of involvement with all the teams, but he is not going to have a day-to-day involvement. It’s going to be no different since he left the Lakers.
“Obviously, he’s a huge fan of the Lakers, but he’s not going to be, ‘Hey Rob, go sign this player. Do that.’ He’ll always be involved with all the teams that he’s involved in, but no, he’s not going to have day-to-day involvement, at all. He is a super Laker fan and he’ll continue to be a super Laker fan. It’s not bad to have that.”
So, you might see Magic around more, but don’t confuse that with a significant impact on operations.
Rob Pelinka will remain on as President of Basketball Operations and has stated that the franchise will spare no expense to bolster the front office.
The Lakers have needed an influx of front office personnel and executives and they are beginning to get that.
Some will have connections to the Dodgers, and others will be brand new, such as their NBA Draft advisor, Tony Bennett, the former Virginia head coach, not the jazz singer.
So breathe a sigh of relief, Lakers fans, Magic will bring his charm to Crypto, but won’t be making any important decisions. Which, considering how that ended last time, is a good thing for all involved.
You can follow Edwin on Twitter at @ECreates88 or on Bluesky at @ecreates88.bsky.social.