coastalmarker99
07-10-2021, 09:02 AM
Magic never wanted to retire in 1991 but deep down he had no choice. He'd been diagnosed with a disease, but it wasn't an injury. As far as I can tell, he was never symptomatic.
He was a top 5 player in 1990-91 and there was nothing physically keeping him from being a top 5-10 player in 1991-92 imo; or even, for that matter, in 1992-93 if his first comeback had gone ahead.
People just didn't know enough about HIV and were scared to play with him. His career was prematurely ended for reasons completely out of his control.
By the fall of 1995, with the HIV/AIDS cocktail emerging and the idea of HIV as a death sentence fading, and probably inspired by MJ's recent comeback in the Spring of that year, Magic considered attempting a comeback for the second time after the 1992 preseason failure.
He went back and forth in the early part of the season but finally decided in the affirmative after Lakers executive Jerry West told him that he was running out of time to be an NBA player. And so, on January 30, 1996, at the age of 36, in a home game against the Warriors, Magic came off the bench, played 27 minutes, and recorded 19 points, 10 assists, 8 rebounds, and 2 steals on 50% from the field.
Some people were quick to subsequently criticize Magic for being older, slower, and heavier during this comeback, and those things are all true, but...he was still a good player in spite of those things! Not what he was, but a good player!
In 32 regular-season games, he posted 14.6ppg, 6.9apg, 5.7rpg on +7.0% rTS in 29.9mpg. PER 36, that's 17.6 points, 8.3 assists, 6.9 rebounds, and 1 steal. He was even shooting 37% from 3. His 5.2 BPM was the highest on the team, as was his .181 WS/48.
In 4 playoff games, he posted 15.3ppg, 8.5rpg, and 6.5apg on +2.8% rTS in 33.8mpg. His 5.2 BPM was the second-highest on the team behind Eddie Jones, as was his .167 WS/48.
Magic was way down from his peak years but still pretty good. His PER, WS/48, and BPM were basically even with his rookie year but below his peak. Compared to his peers in 1995-96, here’s where Magic ranked (assuming he had played enough to qualify for the leaderboards):
-His 21.1 PER would’ve been 15th in the NBA, just ahead of Scottie Pippen and just below John Stockton
-His .181 WS/48 would’ve been 17th just ahead of….Cedric Ceballos(!) (and Detlef Schrempf).
-The 5.2 BPM would’ve been about tied for 11th with Mookie Blaylock.
-A full season of VORP would’ve put him in line with Kenny Anderson or Kevin Johnson (about 20th in the NBA).
In other words, old and slow Magic was a border line All-Star.
I'll repeat that last line for emphasis: Old and slow Magic was a borderline All-Star. For him to play as well as he did, at 36 years of age, after not playing for 3.5 years is as much proof of his greatness as anything else IMO.
And he did this while playing with some youngsters who probably were not as appreciative as they could've been for the opportunity to play with a top 10 all-time guy.
He was a top 5 player in 1990-91 and there was nothing physically keeping him from being a top 5-10 player in 1991-92 imo; or even, for that matter, in 1992-93 if his first comeback had gone ahead.
People just didn't know enough about HIV and were scared to play with him. His career was prematurely ended for reasons completely out of his control.
By the fall of 1995, with the HIV/AIDS cocktail emerging and the idea of HIV as a death sentence fading, and probably inspired by MJ's recent comeback in the Spring of that year, Magic considered attempting a comeback for the second time after the 1992 preseason failure.
He went back and forth in the early part of the season but finally decided in the affirmative after Lakers executive Jerry West told him that he was running out of time to be an NBA player. And so, on January 30, 1996, at the age of 36, in a home game against the Warriors, Magic came off the bench, played 27 minutes, and recorded 19 points, 10 assists, 8 rebounds, and 2 steals on 50% from the field.
Some people were quick to subsequently criticize Magic for being older, slower, and heavier during this comeback, and those things are all true, but...he was still a good player in spite of those things! Not what he was, but a good player!
In 32 regular-season games, he posted 14.6ppg, 6.9apg, 5.7rpg on +7.0% rTS in 29.9mpg. PER 36, that's 17.6 points, 8.3 assists, 6.9 rebounds, and 1 steal. He was even shooting 37% from 3. His 5.2 BPM was the highest on the team, as was his .181 WS/48.
In 4 playoff games, he posted 15.3ppg, 8.5rpg, and 6.5apg on +2.8% rTS in 33.8mpg. His 5.2 BPM was the second-highest on the team behind Eddie Jones, as was his .167 WS/48.
Magic was way down from his peak years but still pretty good. His PER, WS/48, and BPM were basically even with his rookie year but below his peak. Compared to his peers in 1995-96, here’s where Magic ranked (assuming he had played enough to qualify for the leaderboards):
-His 21.1 PER would’ve been 15th in the NBA, just ahead of Scottie Pippen and just below John Stockton
-His .181 WS/48 would’ve been 17th just ahead of….Cedric Ceballos(!) (and Detlef Schrempf).
-The 5.2 BPM would’ve been about tied for 11th with Mookie Blaylock.
-A full season of VORP would’ve put him in line with Kenny Anderson or Kevin Johnson (about 20th in the NBA).
In other words, old and slow Magic was a border line All-Star.
I'll repeat that last line for emphasis: Old and slow Magic was a borderline All-Star. For him to play as well as he did, at 36 years of age, after not playing for 3.5 years is as much proof of his greatness as anything else IMO.
And he did this while playing with some youngsters who probably were not as appreciative as they could've been for the opportunity to play with a top 10 all-time guy.