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Column: Magic Johnson all smiles over Dodgers’ transformation into a World Series power

NEW YORK — Magic Johnson smiled, because of course he did. It is the smile that won over a city. It is the smile that eased our anxieties over the decades.

In 1980, the kid smiled and told Los Angeles he would lead the Lakers to a championship on a night without Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. In 2012, the old man smiled and told Los Angeles he would lead the Dodgers out of bankruptcy and back to baseball’s promised land.

It really is Magic: With a legendary Laker as one of the owners, the Dodgers now are the most popular team in L.