Los Angeles Lakers: 10 Greatest centers in Lakers history
By Ed Schrenzel
No. 6: Andrew Bynum
At his peak, which unfortunately lasted only a short time due to injury, Bynum was arguably the No. 1 or 2 center in the NBA.
Jim Buss took credit for drafting him directly out of high school. At first, Bynum appeared completely over-matched in the NBA. In his rookie season, he barely got off the bench, playing just seven minutes per game.
He showed some improvement in his second year, averaging 7.8 points per game. But very few would have predicted the giant leap he’d take next- certainly not Kobe, who was caught on tape in an off-court rant criticizing Lakers management for not trading Bynum for Jason Kidd when they seemingly had the chance.
Andrew blossomed in his third season when he became a nearly unstoppable presence in the low post, averaging 13 points and 10 rebounds in just 29 minutes a game. He combined with Bryant and Lamar Odom to lead the surprising Lakers back into contention… until he suffered a knee injury that caused him to miss most of the rest of the season.
He returned to play a total of seven seasons with the Lakers and contributed to their back-to-back titles in 2009 and 2010. For his career, he averaged 11.7 points and 7.8 rebounds a game. But discounting his lost rookie year, the numbers climbed to 13.1 and 8.7, and in his peak five seasons to 14.2 and 9.2, which is why he was elevated to position six among Lakers centers.