Magic: Mike Brown, Bynum & Gasol Are Gone if Lakers Don’t Win

Magic is Not Joking Around

In one of his boldest statements as an NBA analyst for ESPN, Magic Johnson said that if the Lakers do not win Game 7 against the sixth seeded Denver Nuggets, there will be a cleaning of the house that is reminiscent of 2004 after the Lakers were killed by the Detroit Pistons in 5 games.

“They’re going to run Mike Brown first out of town….Then second will be Bynum. Then third will be Gasol.”

With the lackluster play of the Lakers big men, Mike Brown has to take partial responsibility as he came into this season to help the Lakers transition from a perimeter-oriented offense to a more defensive minded, low-post team.

The year started off great as the Lakers were one of the top defensive teams in the league, but after the All-Star break, the Lakers defense started to falter back to a frustrating team of missed rotations and lack of effort.

When it comes to the Lakers’ bigs, Magic Johnson is basically venting the frustrations of most of Lakers Nation. Andrew Bynum’s enigmatic play, and especially his behavior, have basically used up all the good credit he’s built with the fans this year. Couple that with his years of knee injuries and you can add running out of patience to the list of Laker fan’s feelings towards the 24-year-old All-Star center.

With Pau Gasol, this is the second year in a row that he has failed to show up in the playoffs. Last year, there were excuses for Pau to fall back on – girlfriend problems, three years of non-stop competitive basketball, going back to back is pretty good, etc. This was the year that Pau was suppose to regain his 2010 form where he was widely regarded as the best big man in the league.

Now, Magic Johnson is calling out Pau, Drew and Mike Brown on national television. Johnson usually tries to be unbiased while being an analyst on ESPN, but you could feel the anger and disappointment running through his purple & gold veins from seeing what could be a wasted opportunity.