The 'Other' Hoops Team in Manhattan Makes Some 'Magic'

As basketball fans get riled up to see Carmelo, Amare and company open their season for the Knicks against the Celtics on Christmas Day, New York's other hoops drama is making moves of its own. The drama, "Magic/Bird," the six person play, announced this week that rising six-foot-five actor Kevin Daniels will fill the co-starring role of Earvin "Magic" Johnson, alongside six-six Tug Coker, who was earlier selected to portray Celtics star Larry Bird.

The play, produced by Fran Kirmser and Tony Ponturo, is scheduled to open at a still to be determined theater sometime around mid-March.

Unlike Coker, who played collegiate basketball at William & Mary and Virginia, Daniels is probably less of a baller and more of a fan. The release that went out Tuesday said he played in high school in Texas and still follows and enjoys the game, but that he changed focus to acting and studying at Julliard at a young age.

Now he can rekindle that time on the court and as a fan, while matching stokes and lines on the Broadway hardwood with Coker. Daniels told USA Today that it will be an honor to portray that NBA Hall of Famer on stage, eight times a week. "He just has a beautiful presence. He's confident, self-assured, disarming. He's a guy at ease with himself. He's just happy about life," he added.

Johnson, who has yet to meet Daniels, but has taken a very active role in the play, said in a statement, "Kevin Daniels is a great choice to play me and I look forward to his electric performance on the stage.”

As part of his prep work, the self-described Lakers fan has said he is doing what all good athletes do, study hours of video about Johnson so he can best get down his nuances, his mannerisms and some of his game. The difference, of course, is that in team sports, one studies to gain more knowledge of an opponent, while on Broadway, one studies to learn more about an ally, even one who is one of the largest legends sport has ever seen.

With a starting lineup that already includes a pair of leads at six-feet-plus, what will the rest of the cast measure out at? With at least one other player in the ensemble, one expecting to be a Michael Cooper character, tall actors should still keep there hopes up and game going. Come June if all plays out, maybe there will be a pair of basketball hits in Manhattan, one at "The World's Most Famous Arena," and another one just slightly to the north, with "Larry" and "Magic" leading the way.