Basketball · 1980 · Philadelphia, USA
Rookie at Centre
With his injured superstar centre unable to play, a 20-year-old rookie point guard moves to centre for the deciding NBA Finals game and produces one of the greatest single performances in league history.
42 pts, 15 reb, 7 ast
Stat line
Lakers 123-107 76ers
Result
Finals MVP (first rookie ever)
Award
The Los Angeles Lakers led the Philadelphia 76ers three games to two in the 1980 NBA Finals when centre Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, the league's reigning MVP, was ruled out of Game 6 with a severely sprained ankle. Rather than start a traditional backup centre, coach Paul Westhead moved rookie point guard Magic Johnson, in his first professional season, into the centre position for the opening tip.
Johnson played all five positions across the game as the Lakers' lineup rotated fluidly around him, scoring 42 points, grabbing 15 rebounds, and dishing 7 assists while also playing significant minutes at centre against Philadelphia's front line. Los Angeles won 123-107 to clinch the championship.
Johnson was named Finals MVP, the first rookie in NBA history to win the award, for a performance still regarded as one of the greatest in Finals history given the circumstances. The game became a foundational moment in his legend, evidence from his very first season of the positional versatility that would define his career.
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