To honor 75 years of the franchise, the LA Times has pulled out the salt shaker and compiled its list of the 75 greatest Lakers of all time. Inevitably there are happy and disappointed, it’s the principle of a list, everyone is aware of it… especially right now.
The complete list of the 75 best players in Lakers history according to the Los Angeles Times :
- 1. Magical Johnson
- 2. Kobe Bryant
- 3. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
- 4. Jerry West
- 5. Elgin Bailor
- 6. Shaquille O’Neal
- 7. (tie) LeBron James
- 7. (tie) George Mikan
- 9. James Worthy
- 10. Wilt Chamberlain
- 11.Gail Goodrich
- 12. Paul Gasol
- 13. Vern Mikkelsen
- 14. (tie) Byron Scott
- 14. (draw) Jamaal Wilkes
- 16. Michele Bottaio
- 17. Slater Martin
- 18. Antonio Davis
- 19. Norm Nixon
- 20. (tie) Derek Fisher
- 20. (draw) AC Green
- 22. (tie) Clyde Lovellette
- 22. (tie) Jim Pollard
- 24. Happy Hairston
- 25. Lamar Odom
- 26. (tie) Bob McAdoo
- 26. (tie) Robert Horry
- 28. Rudy LaRusso
- 29. Vlade Divac
- 30. Kurt Rambis
- 31.Jim McMillian
- 32.Eddie Jones
- 33. Rick Fox
- 34. Andrea Bynum
- 35. Mychal Thompson
- 36. Put Sandiford-Artest
- 37.Nick VanExel
- 38.Sam Perkins
- 39. Cedric Ceballos
- 40.Elden Campbell
- 41. Dick Barnet
- 42. Kyle Kuzma
- 43. Adrian Dantley
- 44. Glen Rice
- 45. Luke Walton
- 46. Dwight Howard
- 47. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope
- 48. Jim Chones
- 49. Frank Selva
- 50. Brian Shaw
- 51. Julius Randle
- 52. Hot Rod Hundley
- 53.Tom Hawkins
- 54. Brandon Ingram
- 55. Pat Riley
- 56. Sedale Threat
- 57. Dick Garmaker
- 58. Jordan Clarkson
- 59.Keith Erickson
- 60. Lucio Allen
- 61. (tie) Alex Caruso
- 61. (tie) Elmore Smith
- 63. Archie Clark
- 64. (tie) Leroy Ellis
- 64. (tie) Larry Foust
- 66. (tie) Cazzie Russell
- 66. (tie) Whitey Skoog
- 68. Devian George
- 69. Connie Hawkins
- 70. Mike McGee
- 71.Louis Williams
- 72. Horace Grant
- 73. Mitch Kupchak
- 74. Trevor Ariza
- 75. Darrall Imhoff
The @latimes75 maximum @Lakers.https://t.co/xB2ihv7IX1 pic.twitter.com/bIjS8mOd7Q
— David Carrillo Peñaloza (@ByDCP) November 14, 2022
So that’s about it for this list that brings together a bunch of glorious flare-ups, gives us a little onion visual, and reminds us that the panda’s friend has changed his name yet again. To fully understand the behind-the-scenes look at this ranking, a little context. To honor the 75th anniversary of the Lakers, the Los Angeles Times he assembled a small committee made up of columnists and journalists to work on the issue. Each member should then compile a Top 75 of the best Lakers of all time. Only one constraint, the ranking can only include players who have played 100 games in the California colors, that’s why Russell Westbrook and his 90 games are not on this list (no). If the order can be questioned, we still find the great faces of the Lakers from Magic to Kobe via Kareem, Jerry West, Wilt, Shaq, LeBron or even George Mikan and James Worthy. Without forgetting the great lieutenants such as Pau Gasol, Derek Fisher or Robert Horry. In short, all eras are present, from the great conquests to the young nucleus of Reconstruction, which offers seats to Julius Randle, Brandon Ingram and Jordan Clarkson but not to Lonzo Ball. Some presences give the banana like that of Alex Caruso, others make you smile… Kyle Kuzma 42nd, truly ?
To choose is to give up, but among the great absentees we can still mention some emblematic zouaves such as Jordan Farmar, Steve Blake or Sasha Vujacic who perhaps deserve as much as Lou Williams. To avoid getting excited, we won’t even tell you about it Gary Payton Robert Sacre, who was able to win the hearts of the Angelinos in his own way, that is, by bravado on the bench. the Los Angeles Times determined, to swing his 75 best Lakers in history, Nick Young is not one of them and, inevitably, he had to react in his own way.
“Hate is very real, why do you hate me when you love me? Nick Young.
Hate is real because you hate me but you love me.. https://t.co/Oe5d8gRHiG
— Nick Young (@NickSwagyPYoung) November 15, 2022
The Lakers thus celebrate their 75th anniversary, 75 NBA seasons, 62 playoff appearances, 17 titles and 3463 regular season victories. The franchise is a giant in the NBA, choosing its 75 best players is therefore not easy. For our friend Nick Young, he only has to wait ten years before appearing on the Lakers 85 Greatest list, unless Austin Reaves steals his spot first.
Original text: LA Times, David Carrillo Peñaloza, Nick Young.
