Last week, Earvin “Magic” Johnson wanted Hawks General Manager Danny Ferry’s head to roll down the corridors of Phillips Arena like a bowling ball for using inflammatory racial stereotypes to describe NBA All-Star Loul Deng.
This week, the basketball revolutionary and multifaceted business impresario has amended his rigid stance towards the embattled Ferry.
Magic Johnson said that Hawks general manager Danny Ferry deserves a second chance after the two held a lengthy meeting Tuesday. The Hall of Famer poured his sentiments onto social media.
Johnson was just the first in a long procession of prominent athletes who wanted Ferry’s head. Ferry has insisted all along that he was reading from a scouting report on Deng during a conference call with the part-owners. The owner of the team is now being forced to sell the team in the aftermath of the Ferry debacle — after it was determined that Bruce Levenson uttered even more egregious racial statements — and Ferry was disciplined by the organization taking an indefinite leave of absence.
Johnson sent out a series of posts on Twitter following the meeting. They read:
“Just had a heart to heart meeting w/ Hawks GM Danny Ferry! He apologized for his comments about Luol Deng & the African American community.
“In our meeting Danny Ferry’s apology was very sincere.”
“I have a lot of respect for Danny because he called and wanted to talk about how his comments offended so many people.
“After our long meeting, I think he deserves a second chance whether it is with the Hawks or another team.”
Ferry took the leave from the team, some say for good, beginning on Sept. 12,
In related news, Johnson also tweeted that he believes Hawks CEO Steve Koonin should finally hire Dominique Wilkins as a high-level executive with the team. Wilkins currently serves as Vice President of Basketball and as the team’s broadcast analyst, although no one knows what his VP position entails or how much real power Wilkins has within the organization.