41. Pat Riley
I’ll be the first to admit that this might not be an entirely fair ranking of Pat Riley in the context of what he meant to the Lakers as a player. Riley spent five full seasons with in Los Angeles in the early-to-mid 1970s before being traded midway through the 1975-76 campaign. Though he wasn’t an All-Star, he was at least decently productive.
Over those five full seasons as a role player in Los Angeles, Riley averaged 7.8 points, 1.7 assists, and 1.6 rebounds per game. He was never a first option or anything close for the Lakers when he was playing, though he was a part of the historic 1971-72 team that reeled off the record 33-game winning streak. Even still, that’s not the whole reason he comes in at No. 41.
It’s impossible to separate Riley the player and Riley the coach who navigated the Showtime era teams to so much unbelievable success. In a ranking of the all-time great players in the history of the franchise, that probably shouldn’t play a huge factor. However, the history he was a part of as a player in Los Angeles combined with his contributions as a coach ultimately land Riley a little higher than he probably should be. But really, who’s going to deny Pat Riley’s greatness?
Next: No. 40 Jim Chones