Magic Johnson desires to win one other championship.
He gained 5 with the Showtime Lakers and 9 extra as part-owner of LAFC, the Dodgers, the Sparks, the Lakers (5 instances earlier than promoting his stake within the workforce in 2010) and esports’ Team Liquid.
Some of those groups may give Johnson one other title earlier than the tip of the yr.
Another may do the identical: the Washington Spirit.
Johnson has joined the Spirit ownership groupa Washington, D.C.-based franchise that at present has the second-best document within the National Women’s Soccer League. The workforce announced the move Thursday morning, whereas Johnson and workforce majority proprietor Michele Kang appeared collectively on “CBS Morning.”
“You know me, I like sports activities,” stated Johnson, who additionally has a stake within the Washington Commanders. “I like being an proprietor as a result of it’s necessary for (gamers) to see minorities in an possession place. But the principle factor is I additionally love serving to athletes transition from their sport into enterprise, hopefully, or no matter they wish to do after their time as an athlete.
“Michele cares about the identical factor, and so we’ll assist these girls not solely on the sector. We wish to win championships, so I’ve 14 world championships. Now I want 15. We will assist them even after their careers are over.”
Kang is a Korean-American businesswoman who joined the Spirit’s possession group in 2020 and have become the bulk proprietor in 2022, months after the workforce gained its solely NWSL title. On Thursday, she spoke about how Johnson helped the Lakers and the NBA attain new ranges of success many years in the past and the way she will help the Spirit and the NWSL do the identical now.
“He talked to me in regards to the transformation of the Lakers, the best way to remodel a workforce right into a profitable workforce, the best way to form fan experiences and the best way to remodel a sports activities franchise into an everlasting dynasty, which is precisely what we’d like and what we’re going via,” Kang stated. “We’re most likely just a little bit forward of the place we The Lakers were back in ’79however these classes, that knowledge and people experiences are one thing we completely want and we won’t wait to be taught from him.”
The Spirit (12-4-2) additionally introduced Thursday that star midfielder Croix Bethune will miss the rest of the season with a knee harm. The former USC star and member of the U.S. soccer workforce that gained gold on the Paris Olympics reportedly suffered a torn meniscus while throwing the ceremonial first pitch throughout a Washington Nationals recreation final week.
