LOS ANGELES -- Magic Johnson says he could be a player in the 2005 mayor's race in Los Angeles.

While he endorsed Mayor James K. Hahn's candidacy last year, Johnson said Hahn's opposition to another term for police Chief Bernard C. Parks was a huge mistake and cannot go unchallenged. The NBA all-star said he will run in 2005 if there isn't change.

"I think that's a decision that's six months to a year out," Johnson said at the grand opening Tuesday of his Starbucks coffee shop in south Los Angeles. "Basically what's going on now, the people want me to run, not myself."

Earlier, the former Los Angeles Lakers star said: "I'm not just going to run because Mayor Hahn is not doing a good job. I'm going to run because the city needs a new voice, a new vision, and I think that I could do the job."