Clyde Drexler Denies Anti-Magic Johnson Comments in Dream Team Book

In the highly-anticipated tome written by Jack McCallum about the legendary Dream Team, Clyde Drexler said some fairly shocking things about Magic Johnson (in brief: that everyone felt sorry for Johnson during the Barcelona Olympics, and were “waiting for Magic to die” due to HIV.) When the story blew up yesterday, Drexler came out and vehemently denied the quotes attributed to him. Per the AP: “Drexler said in a phone interview that the quotes attributed to him were ‘totally ludicrous’ and he has ‘no idea’ where McCallum got them. In a statement released through the Houston Rockets, Drexler says he would’ve never said those things and that Johnson is one of his closest long-time friends. ‘Magic and I have a friendship that goes back more than 28 years and I would never say such hurtful things,’ Drexler’s statement said. ‘I have reached out to Magic to assure him that I did not say those things and to apologize to him and his family for even having to respond to something as baseless as this.’ McCallum’s book is due out on July 10. On his Web site, McCallum said the excerpt is accurate. Deadspin.com ran the excerpt on Tuesday, and McCallum said the site mischaracterized the context. Drexler was referring to the opinion of many people in the league, McCallum said, and not specifically members of the 1992 Olympic team. Drexler, now an analyst for the Rockets’ locally televised games, said in the statement that he was one of Johnson’s biggest supporters in the wake of the diagnosis that led to his retirement in November 1991. ‘I take great exception to having such comments attributed to me,’ Drexler said. ‘I have nothing but love and respect for Magic Johnson and all that he has accomplished in basketball and in life. I always took pride in being a great teammate throughout my career and I would never have made the statements that were reported in Jack McCallum’s book.’ McCallum interviewed Drexler at his home and got the sense that Drexler felt snubbed when he wasn’t one of the first 10 players named to the much-celebrated team. He was added to the team later, along with Duke’s Christian Laettner.”