The Los Angeles Lakers’ all-time starting five features some of the most legendary players in NBA history.
The LA Lakers are one of the most iconic basketball franchises on earth. They have 17 NBA titles and have dominated eras of NBA basketball dating back to the 1950s.
A long list of the greatest players in NBA history have worn the Lakers’ purple and gold. A star-studded cast of players forms an unbeatable all-time Lakers starting five…
Point guard: Magic Johnson
Championships: 5
Career stats: 19.5 PPG, 7.2 RPG, 11.2 APG, 1.9 SPG, 0.4 BPG
Career Accomplishments: 3x Finals MVP, 3x MVP, 12x All-Star, 10x All-NBA Team Selection
The greatest point guard of all time, Magic Johnson, was the face of the Showtime Lakers in the 1980s. He led the team to five NBA championships in 13 seasons with the Lakers, and it all started in his rookie year.
Johnson filled in at centre for the injured Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and delivered one of the most iconic performances in NBA history. On his way to his first Finals MVP, Johnson had 42 points, 15 rebounds, and 7 assists.
The 6’9” floor general never went more than one season without making the NBA Finals. He has the highest winning percentage in the regular season and postseason of any player ever (72.8%).
Johnson is remembered as one of the most prolific and entertaining performers the sport has seen. His fast-paced, ball-sharing style epitomised an era in purple and gold, as he and Larry Bird dominated the NBA.
Shooting Guard: Kobe Bryant
Championships: 5
Career Stats: 25.0 PPG, 5.2 RPG, 4.7 APG, 1.4 SPG, 0.5 BPG
Career Achievements: 2x Finals MVP, 1x MVP, 18x All-Star, 15x All-NBA Team Selection, 12x All-Defensive Team Selection
20 years as a Laker and five NBA championships means Kobe Bryant is named as the shooting guard for the team’s all-time starting five.
Bryant started his career by becoming the first guard to go straight to the NBA from high school, and formed one of the most dominant duos in NBA history. He and Shaquille O’Neal won a three-peat spanning from 2000 to 2002. Following the departure of O’Neal in 2004, Bryant went on to win two more titles in 2009 and 2010.
He is the franchise’s all-time leader in points with 33,643 as a Laker, and one of the greatest scorers in NBA history. He scored 60 in his final game, one of six 60 point games in his career, and he once went off for a famous 81 points, the second-highest in a single game in NBA history.
He’s a legend of the game, and the rightful two-guard in the Lakers’ all-time team.
Small Forward: LeBron James
Championships: 4
Career Stats: 27.0 PPG, 7.5 RPG, 7.4 APG, 1.5 SPG, 0.7 BPG
Career Achievements: 4x Finals MVP, 4x MVP, 21x All-Star, 21x All-NBA Team Selection, 6x All-Defensive Team Selection, NBA’s all-time leading scorer
The NBA’s all-time leading scorer takes his place on the wing for the Lakers’ all-time team. LeBron James won the championship with the Lakers in 2020, and while he was supposed to spend his twilight years in LA, he looks as good as ever.
James’ title run with the Lakers snapped a decade-long winless era with one of the NBA’s most successful franchises. That solidified him as one of the all-time Laker greats. He won Finals MVP, was named an All-Star six times and an All-NBA player four times as a Laker.
He arrived in LA already in the GOAT discussion with Michael Jordan. James had brought Cleveland their first NBA Championship, beating the 73-9 Golden State Warriors with the first 3-1 comeback in Finals history. James also won two titles and two MVPs with the Miami Heat in the early 2010s.
He’s considered by some the greatest NBA player of all time and is one of the greatest players to wear the purple and gold.
Power Forward: Anthony Davis
Championships: 1
Career Stats: 24.1 PPG, 10.7 RPG, 2.6 APG, 1.3 SPG, 2.3 BPG
Career Achievements: 10x All-Star, 5x All-NBA Team Selection, 5x All-Defensive Team Selection
While Anthony Davis didn’t achieve everything that was expected of him as a Laker, he is still the best true power forward ever in LA. He won the championship alongside James in 2020 and was a crucial piece of their playoff run.
He averaged 28 points and 10 rebounds through the Finals, went off for 43 points and nine rebounds to close out the Portland Trail Blazers and drained a game-winner at the buzzer against the Denver Nuggets, outplaying Nikola Jokic in the Conference Finals.
Davis was a top-five player in the league at his best. It was thought that James would pass the torch to him to carry the Lakers’ franchise forward. Instead, he was traded to the Mavericks for Luka Doncic, but he remains the best power forward to suit up in LA.
Centre: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Championships: 6
Career Stats: 24.6 PPG, 7.9 RPG, 3.6 APG, 0.7 SPG, 2.0 BPG
Career Achievements: 2x Finals MVP, 6x MVP, 19x All-Star, 15x All-NBA Team Selection, 11x All-Defensive Team Selection
Once the NBA’s all-time leading scorer before James took his crown, Abdul-Jabbar is the often underappreciated name that should be in the GOAT discussion.
After six seasons with the Milwaukee Bucks, where he was champion in 1971, Abdul-Jabbar spent 14 seasons of his career with the Lakers. “The Captain” won three of his NBA-record six MVP awards in LA, and led the Lakers to five titles, becoming the oldest Finals MVP ever in 1985.
He became the all-time points leader with an unstoppable shot, the “skyhook”, which no one has been able to replicate since. He developed the shot when the NCAA banned dunking because of Abdul-Jabbar’s dominance.
He played a supporting role to Johnson in the latter stages of his career, but Abdul-Jabbar’s longevity meant he was still great late in his basketball life. 40-year-old Abdul-Jabbar went for a team-high 32 points in the clinching Game 6. For the series, he averaged 22 and 7.
He’s got serious competition with O’Neal and Wilt Chamberlain behind him, but Abdul-Jabbar takes his place as the starting centre in the LA Lakers’ all-time starting five.
Los Angeles Lakers all-time starting five
Point guard: Magic Johnson
Shooting guard: Kobe Bryant
Small forward: LeBron James
Power forward: Anthony Davis
Centre: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar