Magic Johnson recently sat down with NBC News for an exclusive interview about the NBA legend becoming a co-owner of the NFL's Washington Commanders.
Despite having a voluminous business portfolio, Johnson was overcome with emotion when reflecting on the magnitude of his ownership stake in the Washington Commanders. “It’s the biggest thing I’ve ever done in my life,” he told NBC News.
He also knows how important it is to be the franchise's first black co-owner. “Well, first of all, you have to let the employees know that you respect them and it will be a safe place to work,” Johnson said. “And we want you to have a winning attitude, too. These owners just can’t have a winning attitude. It’s got to trickle down to the employees. And then it’s got to trickle down to the coaches and trickle down to the players."
Johnson continued, “So if we respect them, they will respect us and go to the wall for us. And so — I’ve been in so many different sports teams ... and we know how valuable these employees are, because they make it run every single day. And so we’re going to hire the best people. We already got a lot of great people. So this year it’s about listening, watching and really learning.”
