THE NBA / MARK HEISLER : Come Back or Stay Put? : Letting Go Is Hard, but He Truly Should

I stand second to no one in my admiration of and affection for Magic Johnson, one of the truly wonderful people I ever covered, but another comeback?

M-I-S-T-A-K-E.

What for? How does it help the Laker franchise that he helped win five championships?

Johnson muses about wanting Earvin III to see him play?

Little EJ is 3 and will barely remember it, and even if he does, kids are fickle. Michael Jordan’s sons are old enough to have favorites and Mike says they like B.J. Armstrong better than Dad. EJ III may well dote on that cute Nick Van Exel.

How long would Magic stay?

He would either be a short-timer, or it would be uncertain, complicating all plans to rebuild the team.

Coach Del Harris thinks Johnson would be a wonderful influence on his young players?

Of course he would if they would listen to him, but these guys can spot a short-timer a mile away. Remember how fast they tuned out Johnson, the coach? After his stint in the spring of 1994, Johnson said that only one player, Doug Christie, came up to him and asked him a question in the month he was there.

Owner Jerry Buss loves the idea because it will put fans in the seats?

He’s got more important things to worry about, such as how he will be putting fans in seats in a year or two.

Johnson knows he still can play?

I don’t doubt he can for a moment. He was the game’s best point guard when he left, and he didn’t play with his legs. But what is his commitment? Even he isn’t sure or the Lakers wouldn’t be dangling, waiting for word from him . . . again.

I remember the fall of 1992, when he really did come back. Within a month of first announcing his retirement, he started thinking he’d been rushed into it. He had a big moment in the All-Star game in Orlando. He had a ball with the Dream Team in Barcelona. He decided to come back.

But then he went to Maui with his wife, Cookie, and started wondering if it wouldn’t be better just to leave, as Larry Bird was doing--they came in together, maybe they should go out together--so he could lie on the beach whenever he wanted to.

Johnson came back to play in his summer charity game and got all emotional, running under the stands onto the floor, and finally made a formal announcement he was coming back.

He thought his Orlando appearance had ended the controversy about an HIV-positive player. “They’ve been educated,” he said.

Then in the exhibition season, some people made a fuss about trainer Gary Vitti not putting on rubber gloves to treat him for a cut, he began thinking this wasn’t going to be a lark after all and decided to bag it again.

He has since thought about returning several times--I’m losing count--each time finally deciding not to and vowing this was it for good.

It’s human nature to romanticize the past, but the truth is, it was never a lark. It was a challenge, it was fulfilling, it was exhilarating at times and depressing at others and it was always exhausting. It was hard enough to do when he knew he wanted to do it.

It was painful giving up something he loved, more so because it was so early, even more so because he didn’t even get to make the decision. But he was going to have to leave sometime. If he comes back, he still will have to leave sometime, and when he does, he’ll miss it.

It’s time to let it go. It was wonderful. Let it be over.

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

On the Magic Trail

This isn’t the first time rumors have spread that Magic Johnson is returning to the NBA. Here’s a synopsis:

* NOV. 7, 1991: Announces he is HIV-positive and is retiring as a player.

* DECEMBER 1991: Rumors of his return circulate after he is quoted as saying, “I haven’t ruled anything out.” He later said he was misquoted and wasn’t talking about returning to the NBA.

* SEPTEMBER 1992: After winning gold medal at Olympics in Barcelona, announces his return as a Laker player for another season.

* NOVEMBER 1992: Plays in exhibition games, then announces he is retiring again, just before the start of the regular season.

* MARCH 1994: Becomes coach of the Lakers for the final 16 games, then retires from coaching with a 5-11 record.

* JUNE 1994: Becomes a part-owner of the Lakers.

* MAY-JULY 1995: Rumors again circulate: Magic is considering a comeback.

* JULY 18, 1995: Scratch those rumors. “I’m never coming back,” he says. “That’s it. . . . It’s all over. I’m just going to move on with my businesses and have a good time with my family and my [touring] basketball team.”

* JANUARY 1996: After considering practicing with the team, he changes his mind, citing players’ poor attitude. “I don’t know how to come back with a team like this,” he says. “I’d be fighting with somebody out here.”

He later begins practicing with the team.