When thinking about and discussing the Los Angeles Lakers, the word “excellence” comes to mind. Since joining the NBA in 1960, the Lakers have been the epitome of success. Their achievements as a team are as follows.
- -44 playoffs
- -24 split crown
- -27th conference finals participation
- -23 NBA Finals appearances
- -Nine NBA Championships
How did it start? The Lakers name comes from the year they played in Minneapolis, Minnesota. “lakersnews.net” are giant freighters that have traveled along the Great Lakes.
After spending 13 years in Minneapolis, the Lakers became the first West Coast NBA team when they moved to Los Angeles. Ironically, there are no lakes in LA! Still, they kept the name. During the first season of the “City of Angels,” the Lakers finished with a record of 36-43. They defeated the Detroit Pistons in the first round of the playoffs, but lost to the St. Louis Hawks in the Western Conference final. It was a tragic defeat as the Hawks defeated them in Round 7 with only two points.
Throughout their long history, the Lakers have had some notable all-stars on their team. The best include a few players whose jersey numbers have retired.
1. Elgin Baylor-# 22 (Forward): 1960-1971
During his professional basketball career, Baylor averaged an amazing 27.4 points per game. In addition to shooting, Baylor was also good at rebounding and passing. Unfortunately, the Lakers won the national championship during the season when Baylor retired (1971-1972).
2. Wilt Chamberlain-# 13 (center): 1968-1973
Undoubtedly, Chamberlain’s greatest achievement was in 1962, when he scored 100 points against the New York Knicks. This is a record of NBA single games. He also became famous for his fight against Bill Russell in the Boston Celtics.
3. Gail Goodrich-# 25 (Guard): 1965-1968, 1970-1976
Goodrich played for the Lakers from 1971 to 1972 and set the NBA record 33 times in a row. In fact, Goodrich was the highest scorer on the Lakers team.
4. Kareem Abdul Jabbar-# 33 (center): 1975-1989
Jabber became famous for his “Skyhook” shots. He also became the NBA’s top career scorer with 38,387 points. Jabber has won three NBA titles at the Lakers.
5. Earvin “Magic” Johnson-# 32 (Guard): 1979-1991, 1995-1996
Magic Johnson’s amazing pass skills symbolize the dazzling of Los Angeles. His rivalry with Larry Bird has become a legend. Magic has appeared in 12 all-star games and won five championships in the Lakers.
6. Jerry West-# 44 (Forward): 1960-1974
West played particularly well in the playoffs. In the 1965 NBA Finals, he scored an average of 46.3 points in each game. When he retired, West was the NBA’s third top career scorer (25,192 points).
7. James Worthy-# 42 (Forward): 1982-1994
Ironically, valuable people hated basketball as a kid. But he learned to love it and became an equally good player. Worthy won the Lakers three-time nba.com Championship and was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame.
There are no lakes in Los Angeles, but there are Lakers. Support for the next NBA Championship with Los Angeles Lakers products!
