Magic Johnson: Michigan State officials who did nothing about assaults 'should be fired'

Tom Schad, USA TODAY Published 11:18 a.m. ET Jan. 29, 2018 | Updated 11:20 a.m. ET Jan. 29, 2018

MSU coach Tom Izzo answers questions about alleged sexual assault within his program, the distractions over the past few days and his team's 74-68 win over Maryland on Sunday, Jan. 28, 2018. Chris Solari, Detroit Free Press

Los Angeles Lakers president of basketball operations and former Michigan State basketball star Magic Johnson called for accountability at the university in a series of tweets Monday morning.

Johnson wrote in one tweet that anyone at the university who knew about an allegation of sexual assault and did nothing "should be fired."

"If anyone was aware of the sexual assault happening to women on the MSU campus from the office of the President, Board of Trustees, athletic department, faculty & campus police, and didn’t say or do anything about it, they should be fired," Johnson wrote on Twitter Monday morning.

"Cookie and I stand in support of the victims and their families as they embark on the road to recovery; and I support the movement to hold everyone involved accountable," he continued. "The roles of the new President, Board of Trustees, athletic department, faculty, campus police and students will be to work together to create new policies and procedures to ensure this never happens again.

"As a Spartan, I love MSU and want to work with Coach (Tom) Izzo, the administration, and the students to be a part of the solution in any way that I can."

If anyone was aware of the sexual assault happening to women on the MSU campus from the office of the President, Board of Trustees, athletic department, faculty & campus police, and didn’t say or do anything about it, they should be fired.
— Earvin Magic Johnson (@MagicJohnson) January 29, 2018

As a Spartan, I love MSU and want to work with Coach Izzo, the administration, and the students to be a part of the solution in any way that I can.
— Earvin Magic Johnson (@MagicJohnson) January 29, 2018

Michigan State first came under scrutiny for its employment of sports doctor Larry Nassar, who was sentenced to 40 to 175 years in prison last week for sexually assaulting female gymnasts. Then, on Friday, ESPN published an in-depth report about what it called "a pattern of widespread denial, inaction and information suppression of such allegations by officials" across campus, including in the athletic department.

Football coach Mark Dantonio and Izzo, the men's basketball coach, were each mentioned in the report and have since fielded questions about their roles in sexual assault investigations at the school. Izzo dodged a series of questions about the report in his postgame press conference after Sunday's win over Maryland.

MORE: Tom Izzo owes answers to the Michigan State community – and his team

MORE: Mitch Albom: Fair or not, everyone at Michigan State being scrutinized

Johnson, 58, is not the only prominent Michigan State product who has spoken out about the situation in Lansing: Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green and Pittsburgh Steelers running back Le'Veon Bell each addressed the issue Saturday.

Contact Tom Schad at tschad@usatoday.com or on Twitter @Tom_Schad.

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Magic Johnson: Michigan State officials who did nothing about assaults 'should be fired'

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