Earvin “Magic” Johnson appeared opposite Shannon Sharpe on Club Shay Shay. Naturally, basketball was a large part of the discourse. But Sharpe was curious about Johnson’s preference for month-long vacations with family and select friends.
It was a delayed interview. Sharpe hoped to have him on at the end of 2020, but the pandemic forced a postponement.
“Most people take a week, maybe two,” Sharpe said. “You do a month!”
“Well, Shannon, I work so hard,” Johnson replied, and that’s quite the understatement.
Not only did he transform basketball by leading the Los Angeles Lakers to five championships, he went on to own the team in the early 2000s. If there was a basketball equivalent of Mount Rushmore, most would agree that Johnson would be one of the faces.
Though long retired from sport, Johnson continues to make waves as an entrepreneur, humanitarian and philanthropist.
1. Why A Month?
View this post on Instagram
Most of us can only get a week away from work at a time. But then again, the average person isn’t in Magic Johnson’s tax bracket.
Johnson explained, “we went on vacation for two weeks, and I said, man, that’s not enough. So the next year, we did three weeks. That wasn’t enough.”
They stuck to four weeks for a few years before deciding that just over a month was enough time.
2. Where Does Johnson Enjoy Going?
View this post on Instagram
Johnson has been taking his family to Europe for 31 years.
“That’s our annual trip,” he said. “If I get everything I want and I know the place, why not just keep going back?”
They go to a lot of the same countries, but Johnson’s heart is in Italy.
“I love Italian food,” he said. “I gotta stay on my workout, though!”
3. Johnson Sometimes Brings Friends
View this post on Instagram
Some A-listers have accompanied Johnson on trips, including LL Cool J and Samuel L. Jackson, among others.
“We know all of them very well,” Johnson said. “They know us. So it’s easy to go on a trip with them and spend quality time.”
4. Basketball Was Part Of The Conversation
View this post on Instagram
Johnson continues to follow basketball closely from the sidelines.
Following his announcement of being HIV positive, Johnson retired in 1991.
According to Fadeway World, “he wanted to live a long and healthy life, not just for himself, but for his wife and his family. So in the end, retirement was an easy decision.”
Johnson briefly returned for part of the season in 1996, and missed the chance to play with Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal by a few months.
It’s widely believed that if he’d stayed on, they would have made a lethal trio.