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Source: Kevin Winter / Getty

The age of celebrities refuting news sourced from meme accounts continues.

The latest victim is NBA Legend Magic Johnson, who had to respond to a silly tweet from satirical account @CockSources, who tweeted a picture of a smiling Magic with an IV in his arm as if he’s about to get blood drawn.

 

Attached to the photo is a caption that reads, “Earlier today, NBA Legend Magic Johnson donated some of his blood to the Red Cross to help underprivileged communities help fight COVID-19.”

Many found the tweet rightfully offensive due to Magic being HIV+.

Magic responded to the since-deleted tweet that it was false, tweeting, “I’m aware of the false story circling the internet, and to be clear, I have never donated blood.”

The photo in the tweet isn’t photoshopped, but The Associated Press asserts that it originated from PBS Frontline’s 2012 documentary “Endgame: AIDS in Black America” and depicts Magic getting blood drawn by Dr. David Ho –a leading virologist in AIDS research– during a routine check-up.

It was discovered that he had the virus when he got a physical before the start of the 1991-92 NBA season and later decided to reveal the news in a press conference months later.

The diagnosis triggered him to retire because he didn’t want to hurt the game. His new life’s mission was to fight the stigma around the virus and help find better care and preventative measures with the creation of the Magic Johnson Foundation.

However, he wasn’t completely done with the sport as he’d have another stint with the Lakers a few years later, in 1996, before playing overseas. Once he stepped away from the court altogether, he joined Lakers brass as a president of basketball operations, for which he infamously quit during an impromptu press conference just two years later.

He’s still got love for Cali sports, though, because he’s now part owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers and the WNBA’s LA Sparks.

Magic Johnson Denies Viral Rumor That He Donated Blood To COVID Patients  was originally published on cassiuslife.com