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Arbitrary
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 Posted: Sun Nov 18, 2018 10:29 pm Post subject: [OFFICIAL] Constructing the Greatest Lakers Team of All-Time |
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First off, mods, I apologize if this isn't the correct section. Please move if necessary.
Anyway, I can't sleep right now, so I was wondering which players can we use to create a 15-man roster today from our pool of all-time players.
I feel like there should be a few rules, and these things come to my mind right away:
1) Assume that we get them at their absolute prime that they have sustained for a few years.
2) Players who just played one year are disqualified (I was thinking about Malone/Payton).
3) Players who didn't contribute as much (like a championship) due to injuries/general decline (but were great before) are also disqualified (I was thinking about Nash here; Chamberlain played hurt on some seasons, but he helped us win a ring).
4) Generational stars (LeBron James) get a pass.
5) Players that were taken off for "better" players can still be added to round up the roster as we should not limit them because of position (I just tried to see if I can make 3 1-5 rosters).
Basically, I'm coming from an impact perspective. As much as I'd like to use Malone, Payton, Rodman, or Nash, they really didn't do much, stayed long enough, or were more known from their previous teams.
Here's my list so far:
| Code: | PG: Magic Johnson
SG: Kobe Bryant
SF: LeBron James
PF: James Worthy
C: Shaquille O'Neal
PG: Jerry West
SG: Gail Goodrich
SF: Elgin Baylor
PF: Pau Gasol
C: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
PG: Byron Scott
SG: Michael Cooper
SF: Jamaal Wilkes
PF: Bob McAdoo
C: Wilt Chamberlain
Two-way contracts:
- Lamar Odom
- Nick Van Exel |
I'm hoping for serious answers here. Yes, I added Kevin Durant for fun as I thought he's likelier to be had than him AND Anthony Davis.
New/better rules can be added to make this a critical thought process. I'm sure this thread might have been up before, but I want to have a contemporary take given our recent rise back to prominence.
I hope, and I can't wait, for people to try and make a constructive case on which people should be on the roster.
I'll probably recreate the best result in NBA 2K. 
EDIT: I love our all-time players. Best team in the NBA.
Update:
- Nick Van Exel out. Michael Cooper in.
- Added rule #5.
Update 2:
- Kevin Durant out. Worthy, Gasol, McAdoo, and Van Exel all get shifted up.
Update 3:
- Eddie Jones out. Byron Scott in. Michael Cooper shifted to SG from PG.
Last edited by Arbitrary on Sun Nov 18, 2018 11:22 pm; edited 5 times in total |
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greenfrog
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| Posted: Sun Nov 18, 2018 10:37 pm Post subject: |
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| Michael Cooper ahead of Nick. I believe he started as a PG (before my time). |
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Arbitrary
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| Posted: Sun Nov 18, 2018 10:38 pm Post subject: |
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| greenfrog wrote: | | Michael Cooper ahead of Nick. I believe he started as a PG (before my time). |
Damn! Yes! DPoY of 1987 too!
6'5", although I think he was more of an SG for us.
Editing. |
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22
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| Posted: Sun Nov 18, 2018 10:49 pm Post subject: |
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I say you make it where you get the player in their peak AS A LAKER. That’d make it a harder choice to include guys like Malone, Payton, Nash because they were serviceable as lakers but certainly not up to the their HOF standards.
We should be able to have Miami bron |
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Staccatos
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| Posted: Sun Nov 18, 2018 10:57 pm Post subject: |
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| The hell. You can't have rules and then include a player that's never been a Laker. This is just steered to get the answer you want and isn't a credible discussion. |
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activeverb
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| Posted: Sun Nov 18, 2018 11:07 pm Post subject: Re: [OFFICIAL] Constructing the Greatest Lakers Team of All-Time |
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For me:
Kareem/Baylor/Worthy/Magic/Kobe
Shaq/Gasol/Wilkes/West/Goodrich
Wilt/Mikkelsen/Jill Pollard/Nixon/Slater Martin
I am obviously heavier on the 60s guys. I don't think they were as good as guys who came later, but they dominated their eras in a way that the Eddie Jones and Nick Van Exels did not so I put them in. |
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Arbitrary
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| Posted: Sun Nov 18, 2018 11:11 pm Post subject: |
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| Staccatos wrote: | | The hell. You can't have rules and then include a player that's never been a Laker. This is just steered to get the answer you want and isn't a credible discussion. |
Then we can take him out. It was the ONLY player that I included out of fun.
I initially had Worthy and James in the starting F positions.
It's not about what I want. I clearly wanted a good discussion for everyone here.
It's a hypothetical list. No need to be too grumpy about it. |
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activeverb
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| Posted: Sun Nov 18, 2018 11:13 pm Post subject: |
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| Staccatos wrote: | | The hell. You can't have rules and then include a player that's never been a Laker. This is just steered to get the answer you want and isn't a credible discussion. |
Well, the OP ignored his own "rules," so I am assume other posters will just ignore them too. |
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activeverb
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| Posted: Sun Nov 18, 2018 11:18 pm Post subject: |
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| Arbitrary wrote: | | greenfrog wrote: | | Michael Cooper ahead of Nick. I believe he started as a PG (before my time). |
Damn! Yes! DPoY of 1987 too!
6'5", although I think he was more of an SG for us.
Editing. |
Cooper played a little point guard, but he was really a shooting guard. |
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Lakers#1Team
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| Posted: Sun Nov 18, 2018 11:18 pm Post subject: |
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| I would take Byron Scott over Eddie Jones. Eddie only played just over 4 years for the Lakers with no rings. Byron played 10 solid years with 3 championships. |
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Arbitrary
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| Posted: Sun Nov 18, 2018 11:19 pm Post subject: Re: [OFFICIAL] Constructing the Greatest Lakers Team of All-Time |
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| activeverb wrote: | For me:
Kareem/Baylor/Worthy/Magic/Kobe
Shaq/Gasol/Wilkes/West/Goodrich
Wilt/Mikkelsen/Jill Pollard/Nixon/Slater Martin
I am obviously heavier on the 60s guys. I don't think they were as good as guys who came later, but they dominated their eras in a way that the Eddie Jones and Nick Van Exels did not so I put them in. |
That's why I like to have this thread. As much as it's hard to compare players throughout eras, it's also fun to read people's views (especially those who actually saw them) on said players. The best thing that hooked me with LG were the insightful comments of members here.
Anyway, I always have a difficult time on deciding if Shaq or Kareem starts.
Also, people would be lying to themselves if they don't think LeBron would be rightfully included here.
With regards to rules, that's also why I asked for help to refine this. I'm not all-knowing and perfect. Even the fun part of adding Durant was rightfully nixed early on.
EDIT: See, people have different all-time Lakers rosters in their mind. I want to keep that discussion and read how people evaluated their choices. Not everyone will like the list above for sure which is where the discussions and edits/updates come in.
Last edited by Arbitrary on Sun Nov 18, 2018 11:30 pm; edited 2 times in total |
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Bol
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| Posted: Sun Nov 18, 2018 11:24 pm Post subject: |
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Magic
Kobe
LeBron
Shaq
Kareem
Or, if you don't want to have Shaq out of position
Magic
Kobe
Worthy
LeBron
Shaq
I know people will say LeBron hasn't done enough as a Laker, and I wouldn't put him on the all-time team if we were honoring great Lakers, but if you're just talking the best players the franchise has put on the court, being honest, there's really no question that he is the best forward who has ever played for the Lakers. |
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Arbitrary
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| Posted: Sun Nov 18, 2018 11:27 pm Post subject: |
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| Bol wrote: | Magic
Kobe
LeBron
Shaq
Kareem
Or, if you don't want to have Shaq out of position
Magic
Kobe
Worthy
LeBron
Shaq
I know people will say LeBron hasn't done enough as a Laker, and I wouldn't put him on the all-time team if we were honoring great Lakers, but if you're just talking the best players the franchise has put on the court, being honest, there's really no question that he is the best forward who has ever played for the Lakers. |
Wouldn't Kareem be more suited as the PF in a hypothetical Shaq-Kareem frontcourt? |
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activeverb
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| Posted: Sun Nov 18, 2018 11:32 pm Post subject: Re: [OFFICIAL] Constructing the Greatest Lakers Team of All-Time |
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| Arbitrary wrote: |
Also, people would be lying to themselves if they don't think LeBron would be rightfully included here. |
I don't include him myself because he's only played 15 games as a Laker, and that's not enough for me to put him on the all-time team. If his career ended tomorrow, I wouldn't consider him one of the all-time Lakers, so I won't include him based on a guess/projection/estimate/hope of how his Lakers career will play out. |
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Runway8
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| Posted: Sun Nov 18, 2018 11:35 pm Post subject: |
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| activeverb wrote: | | Arbitrary wrote: | | greenfrog wrote: | | Michael Cooper ahead of Nick. I believe he started as a PG (before my time). |
Damn! Yes! DPoY of 1987 too!
6'5", although I think he was more of an SG for us.
Editing. |
Cooper played a little point guard, but he was really a shooting guard. |
I would argue that he played a lot of PG. He was primarily Magic's back-up. The OP should flip Byron as SG, and Cooper as PG for his 3rd team. Byron was not a point. We gave Magic a natural back-up in 1990 with Larry Drew, but he didn't last. And Sedale Threatt in 1992, but was featured immediately due to Magic's retirement.
Sedale was amazing and became our best back-court player immediately. He was money drifting left. The Thief! |
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Arbitrary
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| Posted: Sun Nov 18, 2018 11:35 pm Post subject: Re: [OFFICIAL] Constructing the Greatest Lakers Team of All-Time |
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| activeverb wrote: | | Arbitrary wrote: |
Also, people would be lying to themselves if they don't think LeBron would be rightfully included here. |
I don't include him myself because he's only played 15 games as a Laker, and that's not enough for me to put him on the all-time team. If his career ended tomorrow, I wouldn't consider him one of the all-time Lakers, so I won't include him based on a guess/projection/estimate/hope of how his Lakers career will play out. |
Fair enough, and I hope you didn't think I was trying to go at you personally with my previous comment. I may not have stated it in the best way, but I am on the firm stance that (apart from the Durant fun I had earlier) James is the exception on our list of players. |
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Arbitrary
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| Posted: Sun Nov 18, 2018 11:39 pm Post subject: |
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| Runway8 wrote: | | activeverb wrote: | | Arbitrary wrote: | | greenfrog wrote: | | Michael Cooper ahead of Nick. I believe he started as a PG (before my time). |
Damn! Yes! DPoY of 1987 too!
6'5", although I think he was more of an SG for us.
Editing. |
Cooper played a little point guard, but he was really a shooting guard. |
I would argue that he played a lot of PG. He was primarily Magic's back-up. The OP should flip Byron as SG, and Cooper as PG for his 3rd team. Byron was not a point. We gave Magic a natural back-up in 1990 with Larry Drew, but he didn't last. And Sedale Threatt in 1992, but was featured immediately due to Magic's retirement.
Sedale was amazing and became our best back-court player immediately. He was money drifting left. The Thief! |
If we put Sedale Threatt in the list, who gets cut? As I was trying to remember our great players, I was just lucky to have players that were easily slotted in the 1-5 positions. Some are locks, while others are more contentious. |
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Runway8
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| Posted: Sun Nov 18, 2018 11:42 pm Post subject: |
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| Arbitrary wrote: | | Runway8 wrote: | | activeverb wrote: | | Arbitrary wrote: | | greenfrog wrote: | | Michael Cooper ahead of Nick. I believe he started as a PG (before my time). |
Damn! Yes! DPoY of 1987 too!
6'5", although I think he was more of an SG for us.
Editing. |
Cooper played a little point guard, but he was really a shooting guard. |
I would argue that he played a lot of PG. He was primarily Magic's back-up. The OP should flip Byron as SG, and Cooper as PG for his 3rd team. Byron was not a point. We gave Magic a natural back-up in 1990 with Larry Drew, but he didn't last. And Sedale Threatt in 1992, but was featured immediately due to Magic's retirement.
Sedale was amazing and became our best back-court player immediately. He was money drifting left. The Thief! |
If we put Sedale Threatt in the list, who gets cut? As I was trying to remember our great players, I was just lucky to have players that were easily slotted in the 1-5 positions. Some are locks, while others are more contentious. |
Cooper played great D in his prime, and I think a bit glorified through the years. He would be the one on the bubble IMO, since he's the least skilled among Byron, Nick Van Excel and Sedale. I can't argue with your line-up because Nick and Sedale were not part of the championship squads. But in terms of skills, Nick, Byron and Sedale were better players than Cooper. |
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Arbitrary
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| Posted: Sun Nov 18, 2018 11:46 pm Post subject: |
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Quick thing:
I really am not trying to be personal here. While I typed out the initial list, I do not own it. I'd like to think of it as LG's roster (hence my insistence on good discussions to update things).  |
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activeverb
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| Posted: Sun Nov 18, 2018 11:50 pm Post subject: |
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| Runway8 wrote: |
I would argue that he played a lot of PG. He was primarily Magic's back-up. |
Magic' first four years, he played with Norm Nixon, who was a true point guard.
After that, Cooper backed up both guard positions. Magic, Scott and Cooper in combo probably played about 90% of the total guard minutes. On average, Coop probably played 10-12 minutes at point, and 14-16 at shooting guard. Occasionally, he would play SF. The positions were somewhat fluid, particularly on defense.
During the regular season, they usually had another true point guard like Wes Matthews or Larry Drew who would generally play about 50 games/10 minutes a game, and then be forgotten in the playoffs.
Last edited by activeverb on Sun Nov 18, 2018 11:54 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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OCWA
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| Posted: Sun Nov 18, 2018 11:53 pm Post subject: |
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| Being that KAJ is the greatest NBA player of all time he should probably start. |
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activeverb
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| Posted: Mon Nov 19, 2018 12:04 am Post subject: |
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| Runway8 wrote: | | Arbitrary wrote: | | Runway8 wrote: | | activeverb wrote: | | Arbitrary wrote: | | greenfrog wrote: | | Michael Cooper ahead of Nick. I believe he started as a PG (before my time). |
Damn! Yes! DPoY of 1987 too!
6'5", although I think he was more of an SG for us.
Editing. |
Cooper played a little point guard, but he was really a shooting guard. |
I would argue that he played a lot of PG. He was primarily Magic's back-up. The OP should flip Byron as SG, and Cooper as PG for his 3rd team. Byron was not a point. We gave Magic a natural back-up in 1990 with Larry Drew, but he didn't last. And Sedale Threatt in 1992, but was featured immediately due to Magic's retirement.
Sedale was amazing and became our best back-court player immediately. He was money drifting left. The Thief! |
If we put Sedale Threatt in the list, who gets cut? As I was trying to remember our great players, I was just lucky to have players that were easily slotted in the 1-5 positions. Some are locks, while others are more contentious. |
Cooper played great D in his prime, and I think a bit glorified through the years. He would be the one on the bubble IMO, since he's the least skilled among Byron, Nick Van Excel and Sedale. I can't argue with your line-up because Nick and Sedale were not part of the championship squads. But in terms of skills, Nick, Byron and Sedale were better players than Cooper. |
If you're looking at best Lakers point guards, it would probably go:
Magic
Goodrich (or West) depending on who you want to call the point guard.
Slater Martin (Hall of Famer from the 60s)
Norm Nixon
Nick Van Exel
Michael Cooper (who played both guards slots)
Derek Fisher
Sedale Threatt
Archie Clark (an all-star point guard we traded to get Wilt) |
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activeverb
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| Posted: Mon Nov 19, 2018 12:08 am Post subject: Re: [OFFICIAL] Constructing the Greatest Lakers Team of All-Time |
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| Arbitrary wrote: | | activeverb wrote: | | Arbitrary wrote: |
Also, people would be lying to themselves if they don't think LeBron would be rightfully included here. |
I don't include him myself because he's only played 15 games as a Laker, and that's not enough for me to put him on the all-time team. If his career ended tomorrow, I wouldn't consider him one of the all-time Lakers, so I won't include him based on a guess/projection/estimate/hope of how his Lakers career will play out. |
Fair enough, and I hope you didn't think I was trying to go at you personally with my previous comment. I may not have stated it in the best way, but I am on the firm stance that (apart from the Durant fun I had earlier) James is the exception on our list of players. |
I don't take any of this personally. Lebron is the best forward we've ever had by a long shot, but he hasn't played enough for me to put him on our all-time list. |
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Sentient Meat
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| Posted: Mon Nov 19, 2018 1:20 am Post subject: |
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Magic - Point Guard
West - Shooting Guard
LeBron - Small Forward
Chamberlain - Power Forward
Kareem - Center
West was a better shooter than Kobe... I looked up his steals and even though they didn't keep track of them until his last year... he averaged 2.6 steals at the age of 35. Kobe's best year was 2.2 when he was 24 years of age. West's TS% was the same as Kobe both exactly 55% except there was no three point line so he'd probably be over 60% as both he and Goodrich could shoot from deep. You could say West played against weaker competition but he'd put up huge numbers against the Russell Celtics who were known for their defense.
Magic needs no explanation.
LBJ and Chamberlain running the break with Magic passing to them would be unstoppable... more so than Shaq. Then of course Kareem shooting skyhooks at will. |
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Megaton
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| Posted: Mon Nov 19, 2018 5:07 am Post subject: |
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Starters:
Magic
Kobe
Lebron
Kareem
Wilt
Backups:
West
Baylor
Worthy
Gasol
Shaq
I personally think Wilt would be a much better fit and was more dominate than Shaq imo. Especially peak Wilt. Faster, arguably stronger, taller, better passer and defender than Shaq was.
Magic, Lebron and Wilt in the fast break. The other team might as well be getting ready to inbound after the bucket cuz no one be stopping that.
Then when we need some isos or scoring in half court sets, we get some Kobe and Kareem sky hook action.
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