Although Magic Johnson maintains that he and guard Kevin Johnson of the Phoenix Suns merely engaged in a relatively harmless shoving match that should not even have warranted ejections, the Laker star was fined $3,000 by the NBA on Wednesday for his part in Tuesday night’s altercation.

Kevin Johnson, on the receiving end of Magic’s repeated pushes 3 minutes 22 seconds into the Lakers’ home opener, was fined $1,000 for fighting. Laker guard Byron Scott, the first player to intervene, was fined $500 for pushing Kevin Johnson away from Magic.

Magic Johnson got the stiffest penalty because, as a league spokesman worded it, he hit Kevin Johnson in the face with an open hand. Johnson said after Tuesday’s game and again Wednesday that he had not struck Kevin Johnson, that he had pushed him, and should not be fined more than his combatant.

He told reporters after the Lakers’ practice on Wednesday, before the fines were announced, that he would probably appeal any fine for “punching” the Suns’ guard, who gives away seven inches and 32 pounds to the Lakers’ guard. Magic could not be reached after the fines were imposed, but he reportedly told Laker spokesman Josh Rosenfeld that he “didn’t have any problem” with the league’s action.


“I don’t know what (the fine) is going to be, but I’ll pay it,” Johnson had said earlier Wednesday. “But I don’t want to pay a punching fine, because I didn’t hit him. If it comes to that, I will (appeal).”

TV replays showed that Magic Johnson did not use a clenched fist, but shoved Kevin backward with a left-hand push to the chest, followed by a right-hand push that struck Kevin’s left jaw. Bill Oakes, the lead official in Tuesday’s game, called a “punching” foul on Magic Johnson, apparently as a result of the open-handed blow.

A videotape of the incident was sent to the league office in New York Wednesday morning.

Had the league agreed with Magic Johnson, the amount of the fine would have been reduced. Last week, Atlanta Hawk forward Kevin Willis was fined $1,500 and Indiana center Rik Smits $750 for what the league termed a “fighting incident.”


Oakes had told a pool reporter that Magic Johnson’s ejection was automatic because of the punching foul call. Kevin Johnson’s ejection was at the official’s discretion, Oakes said.

“I’ve seen (the videotape), and, no, I didn’t punch him,” Magic Johnson said. “I told you guys that Tuesday night, but you still (reported) it as a punch. He came running in and, when I pushed him back, you saw (Kevin Johnson’s) head go back. Maybe that’s what you and the refs thought was a punch. You guys saw it wrong.

“I mean, he was this close to me (about six inches), and I could have punched him if I wanted to. But I didn’t. I just pushed him out of my way.”

Cotton Fitzsimmons, the Suns’ coach, questioned the decision to eject Kevin Johnson.


“The officials are on edge this year,” Fitzsimmons said. “They’ve been told to crack down on the fighting. If either player had thrown a punch, (that player) has to go. They did call Magic for that (punching) foul, but Kevin did nothing but push him. There was pushing and shoving all night.”

Tuesday night’s incident was the fourth altercation in the NBA since the start of the exhibition season.

Besides the Willis-Smits fight, Detroit’s James Edwards was fined $2,500 for starting a fight with Philadelphia’s Mike Gminski during the exhibition season. Isiah Thomas of Detroit was fined $1,500 for grabbing Gminski’s throat from behind. Thomas, in another incident, was fined $1,000 for responding to an elbow from Phoenix’s Armon Gilliam with a slap to the face.

But Magic Johnson’s fine was the biggest this season.


Pat Riley, asked whether a stiff fine would hurt Johnson’s cash flow, laughed and said: “That’s just chump change to Earvin.”

After Tuesday night’s game, Kevin Johnson said he immediately regretted the incident. “It is embarrassing to me,” Kevin Johnson said. “I’m surprised I got ejected from the ballgame. I pride myself on my conduct. I try to be a role model.”

Magic Johnson said Wednesday that he wanted to put the incident behind him.

“When you come right down to it, I’m really sorry it happened,” he said. “I’m sorry because I respect and know (Kevin). When you play against one another and it’s a rivalry like we have, you got to make a stand. I guess that’s what we did.”


Laker Notes

Jawann Oldham, a 7-foot center recently released by the Sacramento Kings, was scheduled to have a physical Wednesday, the first step in the club’s attempt to sign him. Oldham, 32, missed all last season after undergoing major reconstructive surgery on his left knee on March 22, 1988.

If Oldham passes his physical and decides to sign with the Lakers rather than the Seattle SuperSonics, who also are vying for him, he figures to play only a supporting role, at least at first.

“We’ve always said we’re looking for a big body,” Coach Pat Riley said. “Someone who can fill a specific role--block shots, rebound, play tough defense. We aren’t looking for him as a scorer. He won’t be part of our rotation right away. He’ll have to prove himself. That’s if we sign him. But if he could help us if he is over his physical problems.”