(Image credit: Wally Skalij/ Getty)
In addition to touching base on Chicago sports, I’m also doing some miscellaneous blogs about other subjects. Today I’m making a list of the top 10 Lakers. Once again, I’m not a Lakers fan, but I do appreciate great players. I also know that George Mikan had a huge impact on the Lakers and NBA, but I didn’t see him play, and he shot about 40% from the field. Honorable mentions include Michael Cooper, Norm Nixon, Gail Goodrich, and Byron Scott. With that in mind, here goes.
10. Jamaal Wilkes:
Jamaal was an exceedingly smooth player, thus the nickname, “Silk”. During his 8-year stint with the Lakers, Wilkes averaged 18.4 points per game. During his peak from 1979–80 thru 1981–82 seasons, Jamaal averaged 20.0, 22.6, and 21.2 points. He also averaged 5.6 rebounds and 2.6 assists. Jamaal’s career was marked by quiet excellence.
9. James Worthy:
‘Big Game James” played all 12 of his NBA seasons with the Lakers. James was part of the showtime Lakers and benefited from playing with Magic Johnson. While James was a great player in his own right, he was overshadowed by even more dominant players on his own team.
8. Elgin Baylor:
Before there was Dr. J, there was Elgin Baylor. Elgin and Jerry West were Batman and Robin during the ’60s. By the early ’70s, Elgin’s career was winding down. For years it seemed like Baylor and West would make their way through the Western Conference of the NBA playoffs only to lose to the Celtics in the finals. They usually put up a valiant fight before losing. Knee injuries led to Baylor’s retirement in 1972. After he retired, the Lakers later won 33 games in a row and won the NBA title. That was due more to the addition of Wilt Chamberlain than Elgin’s retirement. For his career, Elgin averaged 27 points and 13 rebounds. Even in the era Elgin played, those are remarkable numbers.
7. Wilt Chamberlain:
Wilt will make the list of three NBA teams’ top 10 lists. By the time Wilt made it to the Lakers, he was a little past his peak, but still a dominant force. Having said that, in his first year with the Lakers, Wilt went way beyond averaging a double-double, he averaged a 20–20. Averaging 20 points and 21 rebounds is astounding to think about. Even in his final season, Wilt averaged 13–18–4. One of Wilt’s biggest accomplishments, from the Lakers’ perspective, was teaming with Jerry West to bring LA its first NBA championship in 1972.
6. Jerry West:
When the NBA’s logo is only number five on your list of greatest players, you’ve got quite an NBA history. Jerry was only one of the best shooting guards in NBA history. He was great in the regular season but elevated his game during the playoffs. Jerry averaged 27 ppg during the regular season and 29 ppg during the playoffs. Jerry is also recognized as one of the all-time clutch players in the history of the NBA.
5. Shaquille O’Neil:
Shaq played 8 years of his 20-year NBA career with the Lakers. He teamed with Kobe Bryant to win consecutive NBA titles from 2000–2002. Stats-wise, Shaq averaged 25 points a game while pulling down 11 rebounds. While Shaq ranks number 5 on this list, if most enjoyable personalities were being ranked, Shaq would probably be number one.
4: LeBron James:
Lebron may have been higher on this list if he had gotten to LA sooner. While still one of the best in the game, he is not clearly THE best in the game as he once was. During his tenure with the Lakers, James has compiled a line of about 27–8–8. He has also brought home a world championship for the Lakers. LeBron ranks fourth on this list, but this list may be the toughest to crack of any NBA team’s top ten list.
3. Kobe Bryant:
Kobe is probably the closest thing I’ve seen to Michael Jordan in style of play. The image of Kobe the player is still fresh in people’s minds, so I won’t go into a lot of stats. Kobe did average an even 25 points per game during his career. I had thought of Kobe as a volume shooter, but he actually shot .484 from the field. He was also a great defender and a tremendous competitor. Kobe, like some others on this list, would be number one on a lot of other NBA’s top 10 lists.
2. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar:
I was torn between Kareem and Magic for number one on this list. I ultimately went with Magic as number one. Kareem averaged 22.1 ppg as a Laker, but 30.4 ppg as a member of the Milwaukee Bucks, Kareem was also a good passer out of the post, averaging 3.3 assists per game. His 2.5 blocks per game added another dimension to the Lakers’ defense. One of the top 10 players in NBA history.
1. Magic Johnson:
Magic was not only one of the greatest facilitators of all time, but he also seemed to enjoy every minute he was doing it. As the linchpin of the Showtime Lakers, Magic supplemented his 11 assists per game with 19 points per game. Some might remember when Magic played center in game 6 in the 1980 NBA Finals against the 76ers when Kareem was out with an ankle injury. Magic responded with 42 points, 15 rebounds, and 7 assists. Not bad for a guard playing center. To me, that’s the greatest game in the career of the greatest Laker.
Discussion encouraged, just keep it clean and respectful.
