Bill Plaschke: Magic Johnson no longer serves the Lakers, but he sees his signature on their success
LOS ANGELES - The last time most folks saw Earvin Johnson, he was striding out of a Staples Center hallway, the villain who quit on the Los Angeles Lakers, the catalyst of their dysfunctional drama, the butt of so many jokes.
Six months later, on a chilly Monday night in a cluttered neighborhood in south Los Angeles, he is once again Magic.
He stands in the courtyard of the All Peoples Community Center, his smile reflecting off the shine of more than 300 new bicycles. Several hundred families surround him outside the iron gates, their faces pressed to the metal, laughing and smiling along with him.
Soon, they will all come inside for a Johnson-arranged Christmas party. There will be food, singing, games, the air filled with recorded carols and the
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