Magic Johnson: Legend on the court and in the boardroom

NEW YORK -- The ultimate transition player on the court, Magic Johnson has made a relatively seamless one off it as CEO of Magic Johnson Enterprises. While companies were leery of investing in urban America, MJE has thrived in these areas, partnering with major brands such as Starbucks, 24 Hour Fitness and T.G.I. Friday's while the company has hired more than 40,000 minorities nationwide.

This year, the Canyon-Johnson Urban fund has nearly $2 billion in committed capital from its investors and is the largest private equity fund focused on revitalizing ethnically diverse communities in urban areas.

Crisscrossing New York City this week promoting his new book, 32 Ways to Be a Champion in Business (Crown Business), Johnson spoke with NBA.com's John Hareas before one of his two scheduled book signing appearances at the NBA Store in Midtown.

NBA.com: When you were making the transition from five-time NBA champion, All-Star and MVP to entrepreneur, what was the biggest obstacle you had to overcome?

Magic Johnson: I think the perception was, we can always do great in basketball or our particular professional field but we can't translate that over to the board room. They always thought I was a great athlete but I wouldn't be a good businessman, that I couldn't go from the court to the boardroom. Proving the myth and that people were wrong was one of my biggest challenges and hurdles because most of the time, people have seen athletes who have opened sports bars and most of the times, they have failed and people thought I was going to be the same way. Just making sure that I was able to prove the skeptics wrong made me feel good and to be able to relate and tell that to the American people was just great.

NBA.com: Magic Johnson Enterprises has business in how many cities nationwide?
Magic Johnson: Twenty two states and 91 cities.

NBA.com: Personally, what has been more fulfilling: success as an NBA player or as an entrepreneur?

Magic Johnson: They go hand in hand. My brand was built on the court and then I've continued to build the brand off the court. Basketball gave me an avenue to build my brand and it allowed me to already have a brand that I was able to elevate because of business.

NBA.com: Who was your first business mentor?

Magic Johnson: It was two local guys. Greg Eaton and Joel Ferguson from Lansing, Michigan and then from there, of course, Dr. Buss from the Lakers, and many, many others.

NBA.com: Talk about your experience helping your dad, Earvin Sr., in the trash hauling business. What lessons did you learn from him?

Magic Johnson: Two of them. The work ethic I learned from him and then also doing the job the right way and making sure that I complete the job and never let anything go unnoticed. He really taught me that if there was some paper in ice that you would chop that ice up to get to get to that paper to make sure that you did the job the right way because as a kid, if the trash was in the ice, I would go on and let it stay there. But my dad made me come back, chop up that ice up and get that paper out of there.

NBA.com: When people see you, do they see you as the Hall of Famer or the successful entrepreneur?

Magic Johnson: People don't see me as a basketball player, they only know me as a business man and that's what they talk about most of the time and that makes me feel good. That was a part of my life. Of course, you're always going to have sports fans who remember what I was able to do on the court and what the Lakers were able to do. But now everybody, even when they see me, they talk about both. They never really just talk about one.

NBA.com: Former players as politicians are in the news: Kevin Johnson recently won the Mayoral race in Sacramento and Hall of Famer Dave Bing is running for the same position in Detroit. Is a political office in your future?

Magic Johnson: No. Just helping those guys win. I went up to Sacramento and gave K.J. one of his first fundraisers. I talked to the press and people for Kevin in Sacramento. Whatever Dave Bing wants me to do, I'll do because I have tried to encourage Dave to run and I'm happy that he's running. I'm quite sure that he'll win because we deserve to have somebody in Detroit as the mayor like Dave Bing. He has it all. He's a businessman, a former player, he's smart and he's the only the person I feel that can get Detroit in the right direction.

NBA.com: What makes former players successful civic leaders?

Magic Johnson: I think it's great because they've worked with all different types of people in their basketball careers. They've understood how they've had to balance their own finances so they know how to balance the city's budget. They can attract businesses to come in and invest in their cities because of who they are and because of being a mayor as well.

You're going to probably see more and more of this happening now because the cities are familiar with these guys and the people who live in those cities are familiar with them and they see the work that they were doing as far as the charity work. They know them as a person who has done good work in the community and so they wouldn't mind having them as a mayor.

What they've done on the basketball court allows them to have the notoriety and people are aware of them and they understand that they can come in and do a good job in their community.

NBA.com: The economic advisory team Barack Obama put together is missing an entrepreneur. Does he need that position filled and if given the opportunity, would you fill it?

Magic Johnson: First of all, President Elect Obama has put together a great team of people to advise him. He understands what he needs. At anytime he ever wanted to know, want to have small business owners or any advice, especially if it had anything to do with the urban community, I would like to do anything on his urban policy, that's where I'm great at. If he has anything or he sees a role for where he would like me to help him or his person who is heading up all of his urban development because they're going to have that, if he sees that I can work with one of his people, I would love to do that. I'm here to help him get the country back going well and we all know that small businesses and small business owners make America go.

NBA.com: You were quoted as saying this is a business year for the Lakers. Can you expound on that?

Magic Johnson: Last year, the Lakers didn't know what it was all about. The Celtics took it to the Lakers. Only two-three guys had been that far on the Lakers. This year, they had to come back and say, this is going to be the year we know what it's about, we know what we have to do, so this is about business. You go to work every day to take care of your business. We can't take any nights off. The teams you're supposed to beat, we have to beat those teams. It has to be a business year to secure the best record in the league, so they can have homecourt throughout the playoffs

NBA.com: In assessing the Lakers, what is your primary area of concern?

Magic Johnson: The concern has always been playing great defense. If they play great defense, they can win it all. The Lakers season is going to depend on their defense.

NBA.com: Who are your top five point guards in the NBA right now?

Magic Johnson: You got Chris, Deron, Steve Nash, Jason Kidd sitting there and Tony Parker. Those are the guys who make it happen each and every day and they do it in different ways. You got a combination of some old school and new school.

NBA.com: If you're picking a team from scratch, who are you selecting No. 1?

Magic Johnson: Kobe Bryant is going to be No. 1. I think he's an ultimate winner and the ultimate closer and then I would probably take LeBron right after that or right with him. Then the other three guys are probably Tim Duncan, Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett, not in that order. Those are the guys you want to start off with as well as the little man, Chris Paul. Those would be my guys.

NBA.com: When someone picks up the book, what is the overriding feeling you want them to take away?

Magic Johnson: If I can do it, they can do it. I want the reader to take away that it wasn't easy, that they were a lot of naysayers and so, I'm sure the people who will pick it up and read it will have been in the same situation where people will say no way they can be a business woman or a business man or people don't have the support that they should, whether you're a college student or a high school student.

I want them to take away that I continue to work hard and the main thing is that I've over delivered to my partners and will continue to do so. It's just great that we can hire over 40,000 minorities and put them to work across the country and we'll continue to grow that number.