The All-Time Los Angeles Lakers Team is…pretty good. Some might call it elite. Consider that the 12 selected players AVERAGED 8.5 all-star game appearances and 6.9 all-NBA appearances during their tenure with the team. The starting lineup AVERAGED 13.2 all-star game appearances, and 11.4 all-NBA appearances. Three of the greatest players of all time, George Mikan, Shaquille O’Neal, and Wilt Chamberlain, have to come off the bench. Every single player is either in the hall-of-fame, or will be enshrined as soon as they’re eligible (Shaq and Kobe).
It’s hard to even choose a coach for this team. John Kundla, who won five titles in 11 seasons, and had a .583 winning percentage? Pat Riley, who won four titles in nine seasons, and had a .733 winning percentage? Or Phil Jackson, who also had five titles in 11 seasons, coupled with a .676 winning percentage?
The easiest call on this team is at point guard, where 6’9” Magic Johnson provides greatness, leadership, and positional flexibility. His size makes it easier to start two other guards beside him – Jerry West and Kobe Bryant. There’s really not much that I can say about this trio. West and Kobe might fight to the death over who gets the last shot in the game, but talent (usually) trumps all in the NBA, and this is the greatest backcourt in this tournament.
Elgin Baylor is the greatest forward in franchise history, and gets the start in the frontcourt alongside Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Kareem’s consistency over a long period of time gives him the slight edge over Mikan, who has a case as the most dominant player relative to his competition in league history, and O’Neal, who has a case as the most statistically dominant player in franchise history. In his four Finals appearances as a Laker (20 games), Shaq AVERAGED 33.6 points per game, 14.1 rebounds per game, and shot 60.2 percent from the field.
The bench consists of trailblazers from the first era of team greatness (Jim Pollard, Vern Mikkelsen, and Mikan), secondary stars who helped the team continue to flourish in the subsequent decades (Gail Goodrich and James Worthy), and the two most physically imposing superstars in league history (Chamberlain and O’Neal). There’s not even room for the likes of Pau Gasol, Jamaal Wilkes, or Slater Martin due to the greatness of the 12 selected players.
I can’t identify a weakness with this team. We can quibble with the fact that they have no backup point guard, but West can slide over to that position if Magic needs a rest. The starting lineup will have to find a way to share one basketball, but that’s certainly a nice problem to have, and one that Magic Johnson should help to alleviate. Even though this team enters as the two seed in our tournament, they’re the favorites to win it all, and it will be interesting to see who will be able to challenge them.
Coach – If I have to choose, I’ll go with Riley, but you can’t go wrong with Jackson or Kundla.
All-Time Franchise Winning Percentage (through 2014-15): .609