ERVIN JOHNSON III GAY AND PROUD HITS THE TOWN HAND-IN-HAND WITH HIS BOYFRIEND

ERVIN JOHNSON III AND ERVIN "MAGIC" JOHNSON

It shouldn't be news that a father is proud of his gay son in 2013, but it is. Especially in the world of sports, where athletes in the major professional sports don't feel comfortable coming out of the closet until after they have retired -- a current NFL player recently said that coming out while a member of a sports team was a "selfish act."

But NBA legend Magic Johnson doesn't care. His son is gay and proud, and his father is completely supportive. 

EJ recently hit the town in Hollywood hand-in-hand with his boyfriend. Magic tells TMZ, "Cookie and I love EJ and support him in every way. We're very proud of him."

EJ, a student at New York University, adds that he's been "hoping and praying" for his dad's team -- meaning the Los Angeles Dodgers, which Magic and his business partners purchased a year ago.

EJ tweeted about it a year ago, writing, "I kno I haven't tweeted in awhile so I wanted to take this time to congratulate my daddy on buying the dodgers Luv u @MagicJohnson."