Twenty-five years after Magic Johnson’s memorable final All-Star Game, the men who played and worked alongside the NBA legend talked with The Washington Times’ Todd Dybas about the dramatic, wrenching months that shook the sports world.
Former Detroit Pistons star Isiah Thomas, now an analyst for NBA TV, remembers his emotional reaction when he heard his friend Johnson’s announcement that he had contracted HIV and would retire from the game.
“I found out right after practice, right after shoot around,” Thomas told Dybas. “Mark Aguirre and I were leaving The Palace and I got a call from a Lakers PR agent and he said that Magic was having a press conference and he was announcing that he was HIV positive and he would call us back. Mark and I pulled over under a viaduct. We both were in shock. We hugged each other and cried for about 10, 15 minutes on a back road under the viaduct just totally in shock. That’s how we found out.”
For more from Thomas, Larry Bird, Don Nelson and others reflecting on that pivotal year in NBA history, click here to read Dybas’ story: “Magic Johnson’s 1992 valentine to the NBA, the fans and the game.”
• Tommy Chalk can be reached at tchalk@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.