48 Fun Facts About Los Angeles Lakers

Which big man did the Minneapolis Lakers select first in a 1947 dispersal draft, launching the first NBA dynasty?

The Lakers won the NBL title in his first season and four of the first five NBA championships after the 1949 merger.

In what year did the Lakers move from Minneapolis to Los Angeles, the NBA's first West Coast team?

Owner Bob Short made the move; the team kept the name even though Los Angeles is somewhat short of lakes.

Which Laker scored a then-record 71 points against the Knicks in November 1960?

Elgin Baylor scored 71 points and grabbed 25 rebounds against the Knicks on November 15, 1960; his number 22 hangs in the rafters.

Whose silhouette is generally understood to appear on the NBA's official logo?

Designer Alan Siegel based the 1969 NBA logo on a photo of Jerry West, who played all 14 of his seasons with the Lakers and later ran their front office.

What unique 1969 distinction does Jerry West hold?

Jerry West is the only Finals MVP from the losing team: the Lakers fell to Boston in seven games in 1969, one of six Finals losses to the Celtics that decade.

The Lakers acquired Wilt Chamberlain in July 1968 from which team?

Darrell Imhoff, Archie Clark and Jerry Chambers went the other way; Wilt led the league in rebounding in the 1972 title season.

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar arrived in Los Angeles in 1975 in a trade with which team?

The Milwaukee Bucks sent Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Walt Wesley to the Lakers in June 1975 for Elmore Smith, Brian Winters, Dave Meyers and Junior Bridgeman.

How many regular-season MVP awards did Kareem Abdul-Jabbar win, an NBA record?

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar won six MVP awards (1971, 1972, 1974, 1976, 1977 and 1980), one more than Bill Russell or Michael Jordan.

How much did Jerry Buss pay Jack Kent Cooke for the Lakers, Kings and arena?

Jerry Buss paid $67.5 million in 1979 for the Lakers, the Kings and their arena; the USC chemistry PhD won ten championships as owner and turned games into entertainment.

The Lakers took Magic Johnson first overall in the 1979 draft out of which college?

Magic Johnson led Michigan State past Larry Bird's Indiana State in the 1979 NCAA final before the Lakers took him first overall.

In Game 6 of the 1980 Finals, rookie Magic Johnson filled in for the injured Kareem at which position?

Magic Johnson started at center for the injured Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and posted 42 points, 15 rebounds and 7 assists, winning Finals MVP as a rookie.

What nickname did the fast-breaking Lakers of the 1980s earn?

Showtime was the fast-break era of Magic Johnson's Lakers, who made the Finals every year from 1982 to 1985 and again from 1987 to 1989.

How many championships did the Lakers win in the 1980s?

1980, 1982, 1985, 1987 and 1988; the 1988 title was the last until 2000.

The Lakers' first Finals win over the Celtics, in 1985, followed how many straight series losses to them?

The Lakers had lost eight straight Finals to Boston (1959, 1962, 1963, 1965, 1966, 1968, 1969 and 1984) before the 38-year-old Kareem Abdul-Jabbar won Finals MVP in 1985.

Which Laker won the NBA's regular-season MVP award in 2008?

Kobe Bryant won his only regular-season MVP in 2008, averaging 28.3 points as the Lakers went 57-25 and reached the Finals.

Which first-overall pick from North Carolina won Finals MVP with a Game 7 triple-double in 1988?

James Worthy posted 36 points, 16 rebounds and 10 assists in Game 7 against Detroit in 1988; his number 42 hangs in the rafters.

On what date did Magic Johnson announce he was HIV-positive and retiring?

Magic Johnson announced on November 7, 1991 that he had tested HIV-positive and was retiring; he returned to win the 1992 All-Star Game MVP.

The Lakers acquired 17-year-old Kobe Bryant in 1996 by trading which player to the team that drafted him?

Vlade Divac, the Lakers' starting center for most of the 1990s, was sent away for the draft rights to 17-year-old Kobe Bryant in July 1996.

Which team drafted Kobe Bryant, 13th overall, before trading him to Los Angeles?

The Charlotte Hornets picked Kobe Bryant 13th in 1996 and traded his rights to the Lakers; he spent all 20 seasons in purple and gold, with numbers 8 and 24 both retired.

Which coach, fresh from six titles in Chicago, led the Lakers to a three-peat from 2000 to 2002?

Phil Jackson brought Tex Winter's triangle offence from Chicago and won five Lakers titles in two stints: 2000, 2001, 2002, 2009 and 2010.

Who was named Finals MVP in all three of the Lakers' 2000-2002 championships?

Shaquille O'Neal, also the 2000 regular-season MVP, won all three Finals MVPs; his feud with Kobe Bryant ended with his trade to Miami in 2004.

Against which team did Kobe Bryant score 81 points on January 22, 2006?

Kobe Bryant's 81 against the Toronto Raptors at Staples Center is the second-highest single-game total in NBA history, behind Wilt Chamberlain's 100 in 1962.

How many points did Kobe Bryant score in his final NBA game, against Utah on April 13, 2016?

Kobe Bryant scored 60 points on 50 shots against Utah in his farewell game; two years later he won an Oscar for the animated short Dear Basketball.

The trade for which Spanish big man sent the Lakers to the 2008 Finals and 2009–10 titles?

Pau Gasol arrived from Memphis in February 2008 and anchored three straight Finals runs; his number 16 was retired in 2023 beside Kobe Bryant's.

The Lakers' 2020 championship was won inside a pandemic "bubble" at which location?

The 2020 playoffs were played at Walt Disney World in Florida; the Lakers beat Miami 4-2 with no fans present and LeBron James won Finals MVP with a third franchise.

The 2020 title was the Lakers' 17th, tying them at the time with which franchise?

Boston moved back ahead with its 18th in 2024; the two clubs own 35 of the league's championships between them.

In February 2025 the Lakers made a stunning trade with Dallas that brought in which star?

Luka Doncic came from Dallas for Anthony Davis in early February 2025, in a swap widely called one of the most shocking trades in American sports history.

Which former player was hired as Lakers head coach in June 2024?

JJ Redick, the former sharpshooter turned podcaster, was hired in June 2024 to replace the fired Darvin Ham as Lakers head coach.

In June 2025 the Buss family agreed to sell majority control of the Lakers to which Dodgers owner?

Mark Walter, controlling owner of the Dodgers, agreed to buy majority control at a roughly $10 billion valuation, then the largest ever for a sports franchise.

What milestone did Jeanie Buss reach when the Lakers won in 2020?

Jeanie Buss became the first female controlling owner to win an NBA title; she had taken control after her father Jerry died in 2013.

The Lakers' home from 1967 to 1999 was which Inglewood arena?

The Forum opened in Inglewood in December 1967 and housed the Lakers until they moved downtown to Staples Center in October 1999.

What new name did the Lakers' downtown arena, formerly Staples Center, take in December 2021?

Staples Center became Crypto.com Arena on December 25, 2021, under a naming deal reported at $700 million over 20 years.

Broadcaster Chick Hearn called how many consecutive Lakers games in a streak that ran from 1965 to 2001?

Chick Hearn called 3,338 straight games from November 1965 until heart surgery in December 2001; his microphone is retired alongside the jerseys.

Which of these basketball phrases is Chick Hearn credited with popularising?

Chick Hearn popularised 'slam dunk', along with 'air ball', 'no harm, no foul' and 'the mustard's off the hot dog'.

Through the 2024-25 season, how many NBA Finals had the Lakers reached, a league record?

The Lakers' 32 Finals appearances lead the NBA, ahead of the Celtics' 23; the 2020 bubble title was the most recent of those trips.

What was the Lakers' record in their worst season, 2015-16?

The Lakers went 17-65 in 2015-16, Kobe Bryant's farewell year, in the middle of six straight seasons without the playoffs.

Which number was retired for the franchise's first superstar, the Minneapolis-era centre?

George Mikan's 99 was raised in October 2022; the Lakers have retired 14 numbers in all, plus Chick Hearn's microphone.

Which Lakers champion of the 1980s wears number 21 in the rafters?

Michael Cooper, an eight-time All-Defensive selection, had his 21 retired in January 2025, joining Wilkes (52), Worthy (42) and Goodrich (25).

Which coach won four titles with the Lakers and 533 regular-season games in the 1980s?

Pat Riley took over in November 1981, when Jerry Buss briefly paired him with Jerry West as co-coaches, and went 533-194 with four titles in the 1980s.

Which Laker hit the 0.4-second game-winner at San Antonio in the 2004 playoffs?

Derek Fisher caught the inbound and fired with 0.4 seconds left to win Game 5 of the 2004 Western semifinals 74-73 in San Antonio.

The 1971-72 Lakers were coached by which former Celtics guard?

Bill Sharman, a four-time champion as a Celtics guard, coached the 1971-72 Lakers to 69 wins and the 33-game streak.

Which coach won five titles in the team's Minneapolis era?

He was the franchise's first NBA coach and had George Mikan in the middle for most of that run; only Phil Jackson later matched his five.

The Lakers franchise began in 1946 in the National Basketball League under what name?

The Detroit Gems won just 4 of 44 games in 1946-47 before Ben Berger and Morris Chalfen bought them for $15,000 and moved them to Minneapolis.

Who owned the Lakers when they moved from Minneapolis to Los Angeles in 1960?

Bob Short's group had bought the Lakers in 1957, pledging to keep them in Minnesota, yet he moved them to Los Angeles in 1960.

Which Lakers coach was fired early in 1981-82 shortly after Magic Johnson publicly demanded a trade?

Paul Westhead was fired on November 19, 1981, the day after Magic Johnson asked to be traded; Jerry Buss insisted the outburst played no part, but Magic was booed for weeks.

Which coach presided over the Lakers' first losing season since 1976, a 43-loss campaign in 1992-93?

Randy Pfund's Lakers went 39-43 in 1992-93 yet reached the playoffs as the eighth seed; he was fired in March 1994.

What did the Lakers give Phoenix in the July 2012 sign-and-trade for Steve Nash?

The Lakers sent Phoenix four draft picks (first-rounders in 2013 and 2015, second-rounders in 2013 and 2014) and $3 million in cash for Steve Nash.

Which father and son made NBA history by playing together for the Lakers in October 2024?

LeBron and Bronny James became the first father and son to play in an NBA game together, in the Lakers' season-opening win over Minnesota on October 22, 2024.