"Be careful around one of your bosses, guy named Rob Pelinka, he's a backstabber" - Magic Johnson admitted he warned Kawhi Leonard about the Lakers dysfunction in 2019

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"Be careful around one of your bosses, guy named Rob Pelinka, he's a backstabber" - Magic Johnson admitted he warned Kawhi Leonard about the Lakers dysfunction in 2019 originally appeared on Basketball Network.
Magic Johnson had his suitcase of secrets on hand when he met with Kawhi Leonard in the summer of 2019.
The reigning Finals MVP had just led the Toronto Raptors to their first championship and was the most sought-after free agent in basketball. The Los Angeles Lakers, fresh off trading for Anthony Davis, were one of the frontrunners to sign him. Johnson, who had resigned as the team's president of basketball operations only two months earlier, made his pitch — but it came with an unvarnished warning.
"You'll love playing for us," Johnson told Leonard, "just be careful around one of your bosses, guy named Rob Pelinka, he's a backstabber." It was a stunning thing to say about the team's general manager during a recruitment meeting, especially with the Lakers hoping to land the league's biggest prize.
His recruitment pitch was a mix of invitation and exit interview.
"Come join the team, it's a great place to work, except, well, I don't actually work there anymore," Johnson said. "A couple of months ago, I couldn't take the chaos, so I quit."
The Lakers' chaos in 2019
When Johnson stepped down in April 2019, it shocked the NBA world. The Lakers were in the middle of another disappointing season, missing the playoffs despite having LeBron James in his first year with the franchise. The Hall of Famer later revealed the organization's decision-making process had become a tangle of conflicting agendas.
"What's happening is there are too many opinions, too many voices, and everybody thinks their way is the right way,"Johnson said. "That's why you can't make good decisions because you got six, eight voices and everybody thinks their strategy is the right one. You can't have that."
The Lakers front office was under heavy scrutiny at the time. Reports described an environment where ownership, management and even outside advisers all tried to influence basketball decisions. Johnson's public resignation made those internal fractures impossible to ignore, and his direct warning to Leonard showed how deeply the dysfunction had affected him.
Johnson had gone on record weeks earlier criticizing Rob Pelinka for what he described as betrayal, claiming the GM had been talking behind his back during his tenure. That kind of public airing of grievances is rare among executives, and it only added to the perception that the Lakers were a powerhouse brand dealing with behind-the-scenes instability.Kawhi's decision and the aftermath
Leonard, meanwhile, was in the middle of one of the most closely watched free agency decisions in years.
The Lakers, Clippers and Raptors were all in the mix. The Lakers offered him the chance to form a superteam with James and Davis. The Clippers promised him a franchise built around him, ultimately landing Paul George in a blockbuster trade to seal the deal.
In the end, Leonard chose the Clippers. While his decision was based on multiple factors, the Lakers' internal turmoil likely didn't help their case. Magic's warning about Pelinka and his candid description of the chaos inside the organization painted a picture of a team still trying to find stability.
The Lakers, of course, rebounded quickly. In their first full season with a healthy James and a fresh-faced Davis, they won the 2020 NBA championship in the Orlando bubble.
For Leonard, the meeting was a rare look at how a team's internal politics can play as big a role as roster talent in shaping a star's decision. For Magic, it was an opportunity to be honest — perhaps brutally so — about why he walked away from one of the most glamorous jobs in sports.This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Aug 10, 2025, where it first appeared.