Norm Nixon shars why he wasn't sold on Magic Johnson's impact on the Lakers

In the late '70s, Magic Johnson became a household name in basketball circles even before entering the association by simply making his presence felt in collegiate basketball. During his freshman year at Michigan State, he averaged 17 points and 7.4 assists per game and only improved his averages to 17.1 points and 8.4 assists per game, all while leading his team to an NCAA Championship in 1979. His remarkable showing set the stage for the 6'9" point guard's entry into the NBA, where he was anticipated to be a unique, otherworldly talent.

However, Norm Nixon was an exception who had no idea of Magic's talent and impact, particularly in elevating the LA Lakers' championship aspirations.

Nixon never felt threatened by Magic's arrival

Nixon established himself as the Lakers' starting point guard when he arrived two seasons before Magic in the league. Moreover, in his rookie and sophomore years combined, the 6'2" point guard averaged 15.4 points and 7.9 assists per game. While these stats were not exceptional, they suggested Nixon's potential to coexist with Johnson in the starting lineup.

However, there was no doubt that Magic would assume the primary ball handler role upon joining the Purple and Gold, and the shift in dynamics never intimidated Nixon. Speaking about his feelings on Cedric Maxwell's podcast, the 2-time All-Star emphasized how he never felt worried or threatened about losing his place or minutes.

"When they drafted Magic, I wasn't intimidated or worried about Magic. I wanted to win, and I wasn't worried about my job... That wasn't even in my mentality," Nixon said. "I wasn't concerned about Magic coming in to take my job. It was like how are we going to play together?"

Norm had no idea about Johnson's ability to impact winning

In the '70s, there were lots of players who could contribute to their team's success, and then there were standouts like Moses Malone, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Pete Maravich, and Elvin Hayes, who were expected to lead a team to victory on their own. Since Nixon didn't watch much college basketball, he thought Magic belonged in the first category

"We didn't watch college basketball, man," Nixon added. "We might've watched that championship game. If you weren't Kareem, you weren't coming in and turning the team around. You'll come in and be a great piece to an established team, but if you take Kareem away from our team, we would've won nothing."

If Norm was blindsided by Magic's greatness, he quickly gained a firsthand insight into the latter's tailor-made fit to attain greatness in the NBA. Not only did Johnson earn an All-Star nod in the rookie campaign after averaging 18 points (third highest on the team), 7.7 rebounds, and a team-high 7.3 assists per game in the regular season.

In the championship round, Johnson not only averaged 21.5 points, 11.2 rebounds, and 8.7 assists per game as if he was competing against NBA players over a decade but also showed the composure to drop a 41-point and 15-rebound double-double to lead the Lakers to a championship without Kareem by his side.

Related: "Not even close" - Norm Nixon on his beef with Magic Johnson as portrayed in "Winning Time"