The Tape
Was Bernard King better than Magic Johnson?
Bernard King, 1977-1993, against Magic Johnson, 1979-1991. The numbers levelled to one league, then the call.
Method, stated plainly: scoring is adjusted to a league averaging 114 points per team per game. Rebounds and assists are printed as they were recorded, with the league scoring rate beside them, because a rebound in 1962 came out of a different number of missed shots and we will not pretend one multiplier fixes that. Career lines for active players run through 2024-25.
What the numbers say
Adjusted to a league averaging 114 points a game, Bernard King is the bigger scorer: 33.9 a game in 1984-85 against 24.8 for Magic Johnson in 1986-87. That is a real gap of 9.1 points, not an era illusion — Bernard King's league averaged 110.8 and Magic Johnson's averaged 109.9.
Magic Johnson is the passer: 12.2 assists a game to 3.7, and that is the difference between running an offense and finishing one.
Bernard King: A scoring title at 53.0% from the field, almost entirely from inside 18 feet, and a comeback from a torn ACL nobody else had made. Magic Johnson: The highest career assist average in league history, at 6 foot 9, in 9 Finals.
The numbers are free. The verdict is in the Vault.
13 Dossiers, every Dispatch ever sent, and the Tape. One payment, $39, yours for good. The archive keeps growing every morning after you have paid.
Every pairing in the file makes the call in writing, and pass holders read all of them.
5 Dispatches in the archive so far, and one more every morning. 14-day refund, no questions asked.
Read the file: Bernard KingMagic Johnson
The next argument
Get the Dispatch
One email a day: what happened last night, and the game, player or era from history it rhymes with. Four minutes at breakfast, free forever.
Free forever. One tap to leave.