`Magic` Runaway Mvp Choice

May 19, 1987|By Bob Sakamoto.

At long last, Earvin ``Magic`` Johnson has reached the pinnacle of his profession.

The 6-foot-9-inch star of the Los Angeles Lakers, who redefined the position of point guard, was named the National Basketball Association`s Most Valuable Player on Monday. Johnson, the only player named on every ballot, received 65 first-place votes and 733 points from a panel of media members.

Bulls guard Michael Jordan, the NBA`s scoring king, finished second with 10 first-place votes and 433 points. Boston forward Larry Bird, who won the last three MVP awards, was third with one first-place vote and 271 points.

Johnson, the first guard since Oscar Robertson to win the award in 23 years, has the Lakers pointed towards their fourth NBA title in the eight years he has been with them. Yet, each time the Lakers ruled the league during the Magic era, another player walked off with the glory.

In 1980, the Lakers were champions and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was MVP. Two years later, the Lakers were on top but Moses Malone was the MVP. In 1985, the Lakers beat the Celtics for the title, but Bird was deemed more valuable.

There was a sentiment around the league that if Johnson didn`t win it this season, after averaging a career-high 23.9 points and league-best 12.2 assists while leading the Lakers to a 65-17 record, that he might wind up like ex-Lakers Jerry West and Elgin Baylor. Neither was named MVP during their magnificent careers.

``This is more than I ever dreamed of,`` said Johnson, who is preparing for Game 2 of the Western Conference finals against Seattle Tuesday night in Inglewood, Calif. ``I think I`m still living the dream now. It`s like a fairy tale. It`s really nice. I don`t know how to express my feelings.

``This award I dedicate . . . it belongs to my father. I`m living for him, in a sense, playing in the NBA. I`m going to give this to him. I hope he`ll be proud.``

Lakers coach Pat Riley asked Johnson to assume more of the scoring load before the season, realizing the 40-year-old Abdul-Jabbar`s production would probably drop off. For the first time, specific plays were run for Johnson.

``He`s posting up a lot more,`` Portland assistant coach Rick Adelman said. ``He seems to be asserting himself now. Before, you used to just lay off him and control him so he couldn`t bust by you to the basket. Now, he`s shooting a little hook, shooting a little jumper off the dribble, things he`s never done before. I don`t think he--or anybody else--knows how good he can be offensively, because this is the first time he`s done it.``

The Lakers selected Johnson first in the 1979 draft after winning a coin flip with the Bulls, who wound up with David Greenwood. Always more of a passer than a scorer, individual honors eluded him in the pros until now.

``I always thought I would never win it,`` Johnson said. ``I didn`t know what it took to win the award. I always felt I had to score more if I had a chance to win it. I wanted to win it, yes, as long as it was in the team concept. The championship is more important.``

Jordan scored more points. Bird is arguably the game`s greatest all-around player. But this time, nobody could make Magic disappear.

``I`ve always said this, and I haven`t changed my opinion: Magic is the best player in the league,`` Bird said. ``You can talk about Dominique Wilkins and Michael Jordan, but they`re not Magic Johnson. Those guys are dunkers.

``If I had to take a player, there`s no question who I`d take. Magic`s head and shoulders above everybody else. He makes everybody better around him. He`s 6-9, can post up, can take the outside shot, he can penetrate and he can make the assist. There`s nothing Magic can`t do. He`s so far ahead of everybody else (for MVP), it`s ridiculous.``