Greatest Laker of All Time?

[KobesFinger]

IMO it goes:

Magic
Kobe
West

Next 3 spots are Kareem/Shaq/Baylor. After that its Worthy/Goodrich/Chamberlain/Gasol

[Smoke117]

Even me? Just because I'm a Jordan fan, and know he's better than everyone else as a player in history of the game doesn't mean I'm not rational about him. Nothing I say about Jordan is a form, or product of over hyping. Meanwhile, 3ball is crazy, and excessive.

No, its just a form of fellatio.

[Stringer Bell]

Jerry West obviously had a great career and was a great player, but I'm still not sure how to rank him when it comes to the "eye test". He doesn't look as impressive on film (which can be misleading) as others like Magic, Kobe, Shaq, etc...But the footage I've seen is rather limited, and I'm not really sure where to rank him when it comes to peak play. Career-wise, his resume speaks for itself.

I don't buy into Magic's PC crap about Kobe being the greatest Laker ever. Jerry West's opinion of Kobe being the greatest Laker ever holds more ground to me than Magic's humble act. West seems more of a straight shooter than Magic, who seems so contrived and fake once the cameras turn on.

Magic saying stuff like Jordan being the greatest player ever, "there's Jordan and then the rest of us"....I don't believe he actually thinks anyone was better than him. That goes for a lot of great players who say the PC/humble thing publicly, but deep down they think they are the best. At least that's my opinion on things.

Kobe was indeed a better 2-way player than Magic. So apparently was West, who was a perennial choice on the All-Defensive Team. And he played 7 years when they didn't have an All-Defensive Team. So he'd probably have more than his 5 All-Defensive selections (4 1st team, 1 2nd team) if they had been around then. He made 4 straight first teams at the end part of his career.

But Magic's overall impact? He scored, passed, rebounded. He's possibly the best passer ever. He could see the court so well and find teammates open when they didn't even know they were open. He'd throw the ball at their heads during practice to prove that he could get the ball to them and that they were open and could score. He was a great leader who controlled & dictated the offense, he knew where each player was supposed to be.

He became more of a defensive liability later in his career, mainly with quick guards, but he usually wasn't a bad defender. He was okay.

His overall impact and importance to the team was bigger than that of Kobe, and almost any player ever for that matter.

He also had some of the best finals performances ever. Obviously game 6 against Philadelphia his rookie year when he stepped it up when Kareem was hurt and put up 42/15/7. There were others, like 87'. Not only did he put up 26 PPG, 8 RPG, 13 APG, 2 SPG, 54% FG in the 87' Finals against Boston, but he committed just 13 turnovers in 6 games. His assist ratio was 6 to 1!! Even when he "choked" in the 84' Finals and had some mess ups in games 2 and especially game 4, and one in game 7 (which they were likely to lose anyway) he played excellent throughout the 7 games. 18 PPG, 8 RPG, 14 APG, 2 SPG, 56% FG. Worthy was the real goat of game 2, his error was much bigger than Magic's. Both of them actually had been playing great in that game.

In 8 Finals appearances, as well the 89' finals when injuries limited him to playing just a game and a half (thank Pat Riley for overworking the Lakers with a mini training camp before the Finals), he never played poorly in any of them. He also usually played well in elimination games (check out how he played in the 88' postseason when the Lakers went 4-0 in elimination games). Which is a lot more than I can say for Kobe, who in 2004 had one of the worst finals performances ever for a great player, and played mediocre in a couple of others.

http://www.basketball-reference.com/...80_finals.html
http://www.basketball-reference.com/...82_finals.html
http://www.basketball-reference.com/...83_finals.html
http://www.basketball-reference.com/...84_finals.html
http://www.basketball-reference.com/...85_finals.html
http://www.basketball-reference.com/...87_finals.html
http://www.basketball-reference.com/...88_finals.html
http://www.basketball-reference.com/...89_finals.html
http://www.basketball-reference.com/...91_finals.html

[riseagainst]

lebr0n

[Doranku]

Kobe or Magic. Can't go wrong with either guy.

[Nike D'Antoni]

Where does Davis/Lebron fit in?

[Honor Boost]

lebr0n

This mans saw into the future from 2014

[Airupthere]

This mans saw into the future from 2014

That is not seeing the future. These bransexuals are just so fanatic that they want lebron to be mentioned in every possible category there is

[Vino24]

lebr0n

How tf did this guy know?

[HunterSThompson]

magic and kobe are about the same. tied for #1. both top players of their era.


then west. then Kareem. then shaq. then wilt

[Vino24]

magic and kobe are about the same. tied for #1. both top players of their era.


then west. then Kareem. then shaq. then wilt

Then Odom then Shannon brown then LeBron

[Baller789]

lebr0n

Eh, no.
Better player, arguable.
But greatest Laker?



This ain't Cleveland son.

[Micku]

Magic and Kobe are the two kings of LA. Then there is everyone else I think. You can't go wrong with either. It might be whoever you watched first or grew up with. But then again, I knew some ppl who would take Kobe even though they watched Magic. And some would say Magic is the better team player even though Kobe was the better "individual player".

Jerry West is up there or Kareem. I would say it's proper to give the nod to Jerry West, but a lot of ppl got love for Kareem. Especially the ppl who watched him play. They knew he was the cap.
After that, I'm not too sure. Probably Shaq.

I think that's how it usually goes in LA.

[Full Court]

That is not seeing the future. These bransexuals are just so fanatic that they want lebron to be mentioned in every possible category there is

Exactly. They'll try to argue that Lebum is the greatest Raptor of all time too.

[Round Mound]

Magic. Magic is the reason why there are so many Laker Fans. Showtime was Magic!