Magic’s Final Decision in Two Weeks : Basketball: Bird’s retirement made him question whether he wants to return.

Was this the end for Magic?

Putting off his ultimate career decision two more weeks, Magic Johnson scored 32 points in his annual Midsummer Night’s Magic benefit Saturday night, leading his blue squad past the white team, 147-132.

It was Johnson’s first game in the Forum since an exhibition against Milwaukee last Oct. 23, shortly before he announced his retirement.

Now, will he stay retired?

Johnson said he would decide within two weeks of returning from the Olympics.

Five weeks later, he’s still two weeks away.

“I’m going to make a decision in two weeks,” he said. “Seriously.”

Johnson left Barcelona close to a final decision to return. He told a confidante he was coming back. After the gold medal game, he told NBC’s Mike Fratello: “Everybody in Lakerland, just hold on and you’ll probably see me back.”

However, a few weeks on the beach in Maui started him questioning his desire to return.

Larry Bird’s retirement made him wonder even more.

“It did and it has,” Johnson said. “You think, ‘Well, I’m going to do this,’ and here comes Larry, he’s not playing. You say, ‘Well, do I want to do this?’

“He kind of threw a monkey wrench into the whole thing. I said, ‘Oh man, I don’t need this now.’ ”

One the pro-return side, Johnson said he thinks the Lakers, reinforced by James Edwards and Anthony Peeler, would be a top contender with him.

“With me?” he said. “Oh, we’re a real, really good team. We’re going to be one of the best teams in the West and in the league.”

Going to be?

“Yeah, if I come back.”

He continues to work out three times a day, playing pickup basketball in the morning at UCLA, lifting weights in the afternoon with Laker trainer Gary Vitti, shooting at night. Johnson said he has added 15 pounds to his upper body and is up to 235.

Also, when he walked down the Forum tunnel and onto the floor, he felt a lot of emotion.

“I was happy to walk down that tunnel one more time,” Johnson said. “That’s what messes you up. Larry Bird messes you up, then this, walking down that tunnel again. It’s like, ‘OK Larry--man!’ Then here I come walking out and it’s, ‘I should be back here!’

“But yeah, I’m home once again. I haven’t played here in, what, a year? It seemed like five years.”

His last appearance here was lethargic and sub-par, but Saturday he was sharper, hitting eight three-pointers.

In case it turns out to be his last play, he fired up a three-point attempt at the buzzer from the right wing and missed.

Johnson said later he has a hunch what he will do.

“You know you’ve got it in your body and your bones,” he said. “This is what I love to do and this is what I do. I’ll leave it at that.”

Notes

Sensational as billed: Orlando’s 7-0 rookie center, Shaquille O’Neal, scored 36 points with 19 rebounds, both game highs. Said Johnson: “I’ve been telling you all along, he’s going to be special.” . . . Stanley Roberts, Orlando’s other center who vetoed a trade that would have brought him to the Clippers, saying he didn’t want to live in Los Angeles, attended the game and said the area is growing on him. “I came in for the game with some friends, but I’ve talked to them (Clippers),” Roberts said. “It looks all right. I might be able to cope with it. It wasn’t a problem with the deal. They just didn’t give me any notice. They worked on it three, four weeks but they didn’t let me know until the last second. I’m considering it.”