The All-Time Los Angeles Lakers Team

After the Los Angeles Lakers beat the Orlando Magic to win the  NBA championship – their tenth in Los Angeles – and as I was watching the fans celebrate on TV, I started thinking about who would be on the all-time Laker team. 

In answering this question, I’ve put together the men who in my opinion are the twelve best players in Laker history, beginning with who I feel should be the starting five:

POINT GUARD:  EARVIN “MAGIC” JOHNSON – How could I possibly not choose this man, arguably the greatest all-around point guard ever. He ran “Showtime” in the 1980s to the tune of five titles.

And he’s a tremendous civic leader to boot, owning a theater chain and a part of the team he once led on the court; if Magic ran for mayor of Los Angeles, he would win with at least 80 percent of the vote.

GUARD:  JERRY WEST – One of the quintessential players of the 1960s and early 70s. His silhouette is on the NBA logo; he had that much of an impact on the league at a time when impact players were needed.

On top of that, his longtime tenure as the Laker general manager during their Showtime heyday will never be forgotten.

FORWARD:  ELGIN BAYLOR – Partnered with West to lead the Lakers to ten Finals appearances, a championship in 1972, and an all-time sports record of 33 straight victories that year. Along with West, he helped to define that era.

FORWARD:  JAMES WORTHY – One of the key Lakers during the Showtime 80s. Magic may have gotten more of the headlines and the glory, but I honestly feel that without “Big Game” James and his hard-nosed steady play, those five championships would not have been won.

CENTER:  KAREEM ABDUL-JABBAR – “The Captain”. The all-time leading scorer in the history of basketball, with a devastating and indefensible sky hook. This legend was a six-time NBA champ, including five with in Los Angeles.

Enough said.

I’m fairly sure that people will wholeheartedly agree with me on this starting lineup. Let me list the rest of the all-time Lakers:

KOBE BRYANT, guard – What can I say about the man that hasn’t already been said? If Kobe’s not voted player of this decade, then the world makes no sense whatsoever.

If it was not for Magic and West, he’d definitely be in the starting five here. As such, he’s the sixth man on this roster.

SHAQUILLE O’NEAL, center -   Also known as “The Diesel”  and “Superman”. He was an overpowering big man and part of perhaps the most dominating hoops duo – along with Kobe –  in the last twenty years.

If he had been better at his free throws, which was definitely his Kryptonite, Shaq would have been perfect.

MICHAEL COOPER, guard – Cooop! With his high-knee socks and lock-down defense in the age of Showtime, this hard-nosed cager was the ultimate sixth man. And he was a very good coach with the WNBA’s L.A. Sparks as well, winning two titles with them.

A.C. GREEN, forward – Another key man during the Showtime years, he was the NBA’s answer to Lou Gehrig, as he went roughly 15 years without missing a game. No one else in sports had more character or better morals.

JAMAAL WILKES, forward – Better known as Silk, he helped to start the Showtime dominance in the early 80s and had an extremely smooth jump shot, hence the nickname.

WILT CHAMBERLAIN, center – It would be a crime not to include this man, the key factor in the Lakers’ 1972 title run. 

Chamberlain was probably the greatest player ever in the pre-1970 era. He once scored 100 points in a game, for Pete’s sake! Wilt was the kind of player who was so dominant, he made most games pointless.

GEORGE MIKAN, center - The Lakers’ best player from their Minneapolis days, he was one of the first NBA stars and definitely the first Lakers star. He dominated the 1950s the way Michael Jordan dominated the 1990s, and the way Kobe has dominated this decade. That’s why he needs to be included here.

And as far as co-coaches, I’m going to go with  PAT RILEY and PHIL JACKSON;  Riley heading Showtime in the 80s and the Zen Master, after his decade of dominance with the Chicago Bulls and Air Jordan during the 90s, engineering the Laker success of this decade, breaking Red Auerbach’s record of nine NBA championships with this latest title.

Those are fairly obvious picks, don’t you think?

These are my picks for the all-time Laker team. Hopefully you’ll agree with them and concur with me on these great men of the hardwood.

If, however, you somehow don’t agree with who I have chosen here, the debating can begin now.