Top 5 Lakers Playoff Memories
By Alex Torres
4. Lakers vs 76ers – Game 6 – 1980 NBA Finals: Magic Fills In For Kareem
The Lakers had the number one overall pick in the 1979 NBA Draft. As you all know, they chose Magic Johnson out of Michigan State.
Los Angeles already had Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Magic was exactly what they needed to get over the hump. The Lakers made it to the 1980 NBA Finals and faced the Philadelphia 76ers. The series was tied at two a piece and Game 5 was in Los Angeles. While the Lakers would win the game, it would come at a price, Abdul-Jabbar suffered an ankle injury and would not play in Game 6.
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Without their best player, Philadelphia was supposed to win Game 6. Instead, the Lakers started Magic at center and he would go on to dominate the game from start to finish. He scored 42 points, grabbed 15 rebounds and dished out seven dimes.
It was one of the most dominant performances in Finals history and Magic was a rookie, but that didn’t stop them. The Lakers would win the title, the first of Magic’s five.
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