| Net Worth | $600 Million |
| Age | 59 |
| Born | August 14, 1959 |
| Country of Origin | United States of America |
| Source of Wealth | Professional Basketball Player/Entrepreneur |
What is Magic Johnson’s net worth? Is Magic on the Forbes list? Good questions and we have some answers. Magic Johnson was born as Earvin Johnson Jr. on August 14, 1959, in Michigan.
He came from a large family with nine brothers and sisters. However, that didn’t create problems for the family. As a matter of fact, they were all close. Unlike Lil Wayne, Nicki Minaj or Justin Bieber, Johnson’s childhood was fairly normal. His father worked for a General Motors plant and his mother worked as a school custodian.
Johnson had a love for basketball at an early age. He would practice every single day and start as early as seven in the morning most days.
Like LeBron James and Micheal Jordan, Magic Johnson was big in high school sports. It was at Everett High School where he earned his famous “Magic” nickname when a sportswriter saw him score 36 points, with 16 rebounds and 16 assists.
Magic continued his basketball career at Michigan State University. He played well during his freshman year and helped Michigan State win the Big Ten Conference title. The next year, he led the team to the NCAA finals and faced off against Larry Bird. It was one of the more famous matchups in college basketball history. Johnson and Michigan State won the game, by the way.
After two years in college, Johnson decided it was time to join the NBA. He was drafted by the Los Angeles Lakers in 1979. He was a star player from the very start, averaging nearly 20 points per game during his first season. He helped the Lakers get to the NBA finals and won the NBA Finals MVP award, making him the first rookie player to earn the award. He also became just the fourth player to win NCAA and NBA championships in consecutive years.
Johnson won the finals MVP award once again during the 1981-82 season and the 1986-87 season. He had a terrific career in the NBA and his rivalry with NBA superstar Larry Bird was must-watch television.
In November 1991, Johnson retired from the NBA after revealing he had HIV. This was terrible news because his wife was pregnant with their first child. Thankfully, both his wife and his son did not have HIV. It was an interesting decision to go public with the HIV diagnosis because, at the time, most people associated the virus with homosexuals or drug users.
Johnson’s brave decision to go public with it brought so much awareness to the disease. He also started the Magic Johnson Foundation to support HIV/AIDS research efforts.
Johnson was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2002. As of 2019, Magic Johnson’s net worth stands at an impressive $500 million, making him one of the richest athletes in the world.
Needless to say, his wealth ranks in the same level as Jay Z and Beyonce However, Johnson still has a ways to go before his wealth is comparable to Bill Gates or Jerry Seinfeld.