Facts About Los Angeles Lakers

The Los Angeles Lakers is a professional basketball franchise that currently plays in the Pacific Division of the National Basketball Association's Western Conference. The team originally played in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and it was in "The Land of 10,000 Lakes" that they assumed the "Lakers" nickname. The Lakers have played in three different leagues (the NBL, the BAA and the NBA) and have won a total of 15 league championships, 29 conference titles and 31 division crowns.

  1. First Year

    • The Minneapolis Lakers first took the court during the 1947-48 season as a member of the National Basketball League. Thanks to the acquisition of George Mikan, the Lakers easily won the NBL Championship that season, losing just two games during the playoffs that year.

    First NBA Title

    • The Lakers, still playing in Minneapolis, won their first NBA title--and, in fact, the first NBA title ever--in 1950. Minneapolis beat the Syracuse Nationals in six games to claim the league's inaugural championship, thanks largely to Mikan's 31.3 per game scoring average in the postseason.

    Hall of Famers

    • Several members of the Basketball Hall of Fame have ties to the Lakers. They include players Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Elgin Baylor, Wilt Chamberlain, Gail Goodrich, Connie Hawkins, Magic Johnson, Clyde Lovellette, Slater Martin, Bob McAdoo, George Mikan, Vern Mikkelsen, Jim Pollard, James Worthy and Jerry West; coaches Phil Jackson, John Kundla, Pat Riley and Bill Sharman; and announcer Chick Hearn.

    NBA Most Valuable Players

    • Four different Laker players have won the NBA's Most Valuable Player award. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (1976, 1977, 1980) and Earvin "Magic" Johnson (1987, 1989, 1990) each won the MVP three times, while Shaquille O'Neal (2000) and Kobe Bryant (2008) have each won one as a Laker.

    Scoring Records

    • Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is NBA's all-time leading scorer, scoring 38,387 points during his 20-year basketball career. Also, in 2006, Kobe Bryant scored 81 points against the Toronto Raptors, which is the most in Lakers history and the second highest points total ever in the NBA, behind only Wilt Chamberlain's 100-point game with the Philadelphia Warriors.