Los Angeles Lakers: The 21 best Lakers of the 21st century
By Ed Schrenzel
Greatest Lakers of the 21st century, rank 21-19:
21) JaVale McGee
Averages of 9.6 PPG, 6.8 RPG and 1.8 blocks per game in his 136 games propelled the current Los Angeles Lakers center onto the list. He knows what his strengths and weaknesses are and plays accordingly.
JaVale McGee provides an excellent last line of defense at the hoop. His blocks don’t even tell the whole story. He also causes misses and discourages shots from even being taken.
On offense, he seldom takes a bad shot, sets excellent picks and is one of the best in the league at rolling to the hoop where his outstanding jumping ability makes him an inviting target for lob passes.
20) Lonzo Ball
Although Lonzo Ball played just two seasons with the Lakers and “only” 99 games, his stats cried out for inclusion: 10 PPG, 6.2 rebounds (tops for a Lakers guard), 6.4 assists (tied for second among all Lakers this century) and 1.6 steals.
Many fans lost faith in him, believing that a #2 pick should be a much better shooter than his 31.5% from deep and 44% from the free-throw line. But his passing, defense and court savvy earned him a spot in the top 21. He is now starting for the young, very talented New Orleans Pelicans.
19) Nick Young
One of the biggest characters ever to wear the purple-and-gold, Nick Young enjoyed three of his best pro seasons during the four years he spent with the Lakers.
Overall he averaged 13.1 points and connected on nearly 38% of his three-point attempts in his 220 games.
He wasn’t much of a passer, but the man could shoot! When he was on, he could and did connect from virtually anywhere. And when he put his mind to it, he actually played better than average defense. Had he been somewhat more consistent he would have been ranked higher.