Magic Johnson After Celtics Land Top Pick in 2017 NBA Draft: 'I Still Hate Them'

Magic Johnson beat the Boston Celtics in the NBA Finals twice during his playing career, but he lost to them during Tuesday's draft lottery.

"I still hate them," the Lakers president of basketball operations said of the Celtics after they landed the No. 1 pick by virtue of the right to swap choices with the Brooklyn Nets, per Baxter Holmes of ESPN.com.

While Boston ended the night with the top pick, things could have gone much worse for Johnson's Lakers.

Los Angeles will select second at the draft but would have lost its pick entirely if it fell out of the top three. The Lakers also would have forfeited their 2019 first-round pick to the Orlando Magic had they not finished in the top three in Tuesday's lottery.

Adi Joseph of USA Today called them the "biggest NBA lottery winners."

Johnson will now have the opportunity to add a playmaker such as Lonzo Ball, Jayson Tatum or De'Aaron Fox to a young core that already includes D'Angelo Russell, Brandon Ingram, Julius Randle and Jordan Clarkson, among others.

Los Angeles hasn't been to the playoffs since the 2013 season, but Johnson now has a favorable pick to work with in the rebuilding process—even if it isn't as favorable as Boston's.