BIOGRAPHY AND PERSONALITY OF A FAMOUS LEO: MAGIC JOHNSON

Basketball player. Born Earvin Johnson, Jr. on August 14, 1959 in Lansing, Michigan. After leading Michigan State University to a National Collegiate Athletic Association championship (1979), Johnson played 12 years as a guard for the Los Angeles Lakers (1980–91). He was named to the All-NBA (National Basketball Association) team nine times (1983–91), and was voted the league's Most Valuable Player three times (1987, 1990, 1991). He established records for most career assists and most playoff assists.

Johnson retired from the NBA in 1992 after testing positive for the HIV virus, but returned to play for the Lakers in 1996. In the 1992 Olympics, he was a member of the ‘Dream Team’ that won the basketball gold medal. He was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2002.

Since his retirement, Johnson has been involved in many sucessful business ventures, including several Starbucks franchises and a line of movie theaters. In 1991, he founded the Magic Johnson Foundation, which supports children and young adults in inner-city communities with a focus on AIDS and HIV education.