Magic Johnson’s teammates, as well as some pros weren’t ready for his no-look Showtime because those shots were that perfect.
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The Hall of Fame point guard once opened up about which Lakers struggled most with his legendary no-look passes. According to Magic, every single one of his teammates started off terrible at catching his picture-perfect blind feeds.
But some had it worse than others before they eventually figured it out, and he didn’t hide their names from the community.
Magic Johnson Reveals Worst-to-Best Names at Catching His No-Look Passes
Magic revolutionized the fast break with his signature no-look passes that became Showtime’s calling card in his prime.
Even the crowd went into absolute shock when the 6-foot-9 floor general looked left but threw right, leaving defenders frozen and teammates scrambling. His court vision for those unreal shorts separated him from every point guard before or since.
However, those ridiculous feeds came with a learning curve for his running mates. Magic didn’t hold back when asked to name the best catchers among the Showtime Lakers during a 2011 Los Angeles Times interview.
“Well, they all started off bad, but then they got used to me, you know,” Magic admitted. “I can go all the way back to Jamaal Wilkes, up until Kurt Rambis, AC Green, but everybody improved.”
Wilkes initially struggled to handle those no-look passes, but over time he became the best at catching Magic Johnson’s trick feeds.
As a rookie, Magic once hit Wilkes in the head with a pass after Wilkes lost focus twice. The coach criticized Magic for throwing impossible passes, but Magic told Wilkes not to make him look bad again. He inhaled that advice and transformed himself into Magic’s most reliable target.
“Jamaal Wilkes probably had the best hands I’ve ever played of any player I’ve ever played with,” Johnson revealed. “James Worthy was the probably the best and most dominant, most fundamentally sound player that I played with and then Kareem was the force.”
Rambis and AC Green also made the list of players who struggled before adapting to Magic’s supernatural vision. Both eventually became key role players who understood when the ball was coming even when it looked impossible.
Magic credited Kareem for elevating everyone’s game to another level as a blessing. Playing with the NBA’s second all-time leading scorer and his unstoppable skyhook forced defenses to collapse. That gave Magic endless options to work with.
The adjustment period proved worth it as those Lakers won five championships in nine Finals appearances during the 1980s. Magic’s no-look passes were the engine that powered the most devastating fast break in league history.
