At a press conference at the Forum in Inglewood, Johnson said he had tested positive and would leave the game at once. At the time many people saw HIV as a death sentence, and the news shocked fans far beyond sport.
He became a campaigner for HIV awareness, came back to play in the 1992 All-Star Game, where he was named MVP, and won Olympic gold with the Dream Team that summer. Treatment let him live a long and active life.
Source: Wikipedia