Magic Johnson answered his cell on the first ring and in a nanosecond his excitement was at a fever pitch.
“My boy made it! My boy made it! My boy Coop made the Hall of Fame!” Johnson exclaimed. “Damn! I was hollering, man, when I heard it. I couldn’t believe it. I was so excited for him, man.”
His “boy” is Michael Cooper, the defensive virtuoso on those dominant Lakers championship teams in the 1980s who indeed has been elected to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
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The announcement was made Saturday, but Johnson had been overjoyed for a few days before it became official, his happiness at a high because Cooper was finally being recognized among the greats in the game of basketball because he was an integral part of five Lakers championships.