Magic Johnson loves what teenagers LeBron James and Carmelo Anthony have accomplished as rookies and is disappointed they weren't picked to play in the NBA All-Star Game.
"LeBron and Carmelo have brought so much interest, they should have made it," Johnson said Friday. "They backed it up with their game. You can't tell me they shouldn't be part of the game. I understand that they've got to earn their stripes, so to speak.
"They're good guys. And they've made the other guys work harder at their game."
James and Anthony, both 19, played in Johnson's charity game last summer.
"Both young men have brought a great freshness, a great smile back to the game," Johnson said. "Nobody wants to smile. We've got to get back to smiling, destroying their man at the same time."
The All-Star game will be played Feb. 15 at Staples Center -- its first time in the area since 1983 when the game was played at the Forum in Inglewood.
That was one of 11 All-Star games Johnson played in as a member of the Lakers.
James, averaging nearly 21 points for Cleveland, and Anthony, averaging 19 for Denver, will play with first-year players in the Rookie Challenge on Friday night of All-Star weekend against a team of second-year players.
Johnson left Michigan State University after his sophomore season and was 20 when he played his first NBA game in 1979. He was known for his engaging smile throughout a brilliant career that was suddenly halted in November 1991 when he tested positive for the virus that causes AIDS.
He returned to play half a season for the Lakers in 1996 before retiring for good.
Johnson recalled his most memorable All-Star game -- the 1992 contest in Orlando when he played despite having retired for the first time. He had 25 points and nine assists in a 153-113 victory by the West and won MVP honors.
"That was the best All-Star game for me," Johnson said, recalling the hugs he received from players on both teams. "So much has changed. You have to remember, that was 12 years ago. A few players were against me at that time [because of the virus]. A lot of people thought I wouldn't be here. Here I am."
Of the last 12 years, Johnson said: "It's almost been like a blur."
Now 44, Johnson said he works out five times a week between his business endeavors and public appearances, and feels great.
"I'm happy two times -- when I'm working out and when I'm working," he said. "I'm always thinking about my next thing."
A minority owner and vice president with the Lakers, Johnson has been very successful in the business world. He also established the Magic Johnson Foundation, which has worked to raise funds for community-based organizations dealing with HIV/AIDS education and provide programs to meet the educational needs of urban residents.
A bronze statue of Johnson standing more than 4 meters tall and weighing 1,260kg will be unveiled Wednesday outside Staples Center near a statue of hockey great Wayne Gretzky.
Hawks 100, Celtics 96
The Atlanta Hawks won consecutive games for the first time this season, getting 23 points from Shareef Adbur-Rahim and 22 from Stephen Jackson in a 100-96 victory over the Boston Celtics on Friday night.
"We hurt ourselves with turnovers but it was a win and a win on the road, so we'll take it," said Adbur-Rahim.
It was the Celtics' sixth straight loss and their fifth in a row under interim head coach John Carroll, who took over on Jan. 27 when Jim O'Brien resigned.
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