Playing center in Game 6 of the 1980 NBA Finals
During Game 5 of the 1980 NBA Finals, the unfathomable happened. The Lakers, on the verge of taking a 3-2 advantage over the Philadelphia 76ers, lost their MVP, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, from an ankle injury. Although he managed to finish the game and grab the victory, he was ruled out for Game 6, a game that would be played in Philadelphia.
A rookie Magic Johnson, already an All-Star starting point guard of the Western Conference, decided to take the place of the captain Jabbar and fill the void he had left at the center position.
The player that was leading the Lakers in the playoffs with 9.4 assists, playing point guard, would move to the five in the decisive Game 6. Magic needed to make up for Kareem’s missing scoring, who was averaging 31.9 points and 12.1 rebounds in the playoffs.
Johnson finished the game with 42 points, 15 rebounds and 7 assists, leading the Los Angeles Lakers to the championship and earning Finals MVP honors. The only reason he did not get a triple-double was that he did not handle the ball as he used to do.
For this game, Magic sacrificed his playing style turning into a scorer, delegating the point guard duties entirely to Norm Nixon and Michael Cooper.
This was early proof of Earvin’s versatility and willingness to take the role he was needed to win.