Magic Johnson was thrilled with recruiting LeBron James to the Los Angeles Lakers and feels as though the team is not far from other teams around the NBA.

Johnson surprised the NBA world on Tuesday night when he announced that he was stepping down as the president of basketball operations for the franchise, which was certainly an unexpected move.

While the Lakers were unable to achieve much success this season, it does seem as though the team has a great chance of taking a big step forward next year, and that makes Johnson's exit even more surprising.

But even though he's leaving the franchise, he feels like things are in a good spot.

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From Mike Bresnahan of Spectrum Sportsnet:

Magic said he really enjoyed recruiting LeBron, specifically that part of the job as president of basketball operations. He maintained that the Lakers “were not that far” from other teams talent-wise. Cited injuries as the reason for the season’s downturn.

Lakers fans obviously did expect Johnson to be the one leaving, as rumors have swirled that the team will fire Luke Walton this offseason.

And now the front office will also be looking for a new president of basketball operations, which leaves more uncertainty surrounding the Lakers moving forward.