Alex Rodriguez Credits Lakers Hall of Famer with Inspiring Him to Buy NBA Team originally appeared on Athlon Sports.
New Minnesota Timberwolves majority co-owner Alex Rodriguez, one of the most prolific sluggers in baseball history, reveals that a pivotal chat with a Los Angeles Lakers Hall of Famer, while Rodriguez was still a rising MLB star, ultimately compelled him to pursue NBA ownership in retirement.
Rodriguez and e-commerce businessman own a combined 80% stake in the Timberwolves and their WNBA sister team, the Minnesota Lynx. Rodriguez is the governor for the Lynx, with Lore serving as the alternate governor, while the reserve is true for their hierarchy on the Timberwolves.
During an interview with Marc J. Spears of Andscape, Rodriguez revealed that none other than 12-time All-Star former Lakers point guard Magic Johnson helped him seriously consider owning a franchise in Johnson’s sport of choice.
Rodriguez revealed that ” the reason why I am here is because I saw Magic [Johnson] wearing a suit and tie,” Rodriguez told Spears. “I said, ‘That was a guy I can relate with. He looks like me. He came from the bottom like me.’”
Johnson initially owned a minority portion of the Lakers, winning five titles with the team in that role to match the five he earned as a player. Since then, he’s also won two MLB championships as a part-owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers and a WNBA title as a stakeholder in the Los Angeles Sparks.
“I can’t put myself in his shoes,” Rodriguez said. “But when Magic [became a Los Angeles Lakers minority owner], it kind of ignited my vision. ‘Why not me? Why not you? Why not us?’ I’d like to affect one person to say, ‘This is a guy who is a former athlete who has been through some ups and downs, course-corrected and is someone who can lead others to their dreams.”
A conversation with Johnson around 1996 — when the eventual 14-time MLB All-Star was still with the Seattle Marines — planted the seed for Rodriguez to pursue an NBA ownership stake upon retirement.
“When I was 21 years old, Magic sat with me. I was supposed to have 30 minutes,” Rodriguez said. “And that 30 minutes went to about 3 1/2 hours and nine pages of notes. I asked him a few years later, ‘Magic why did you give me three-plus hours?’ And he said, ‘Because you came in, you were focused, you were making eye contact and you were engaged. I saw your passion. I saw you writing all those notes.’ The main thing he said is, ‘When you do your thing, your obligation is to pass it down to the next generation of us.’”
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This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jul 23, 2025, where it first appeared.
