Greatest Lakers of the 21st century, rank 15-13
15) Metta World Peace/Ron Artest
A fan favorite mostly because of his quirky personality and willingness to speak his mind, MWP was the last reasonably big-name free agent to sign with the Lakers before LeBron James. An exceptionally strong man, he was particularly known for his outstanding defense along with a knack for frustrating his opponents.
Overall in 6 Lakers seasons, he averaged 8.9 PPG in 358 games. But those stats don’t show his true value. He played a significant role as the starting small forward throughout most of his first four-season, 298-game stint.
In particular, he averaged 11 PPG for the 2010 championship team and made two big playoff shots: a buzzer-beating follow-up of a missed shot that won Game 5 against Phoenix, and a huge 3-pointer down the stretch of the Finals Game 7 to secure a title win over the Celtics.
After two years elsewhere, Metta returned to the Lakers for his final two NBA seasons. This time around, he was mostly a veteran presence for the younger players and didn’t get much court time.
14) Rick Fox
Even though his first two seasons with the Lakers had to be excluded because they occurred in the final two years of last century, Rick Fox still contributed enough to the 2000-02 “three-peat” to make this list.
Fox was a tough, no-nonsense player who was much more of a factor during his 360-game stint with the Lakers than his rather modest stats (7.9 points, 2.6 assists) would suggest.
He was one of the team’s best 3-point shooters, especially in 2001, when he connected on 39% of his attempts. Just as importantly, Fox was a scrappy, hard-nosed defender who did whatever dirty work the team needed. He was consistent and durable, playing in all 82 games three straight seasons, and in 76 games another year.
13) Kentavious Caldwell-Pope
He has often been criticized by fans and is seldom given enough credit for his on-court performance over the past three seasons. His current coach, Frank Vogel, however, has shown appreciation for the job KCP has done coming off the bench this year.
In 117 Lakers games, he has averaged 11.6 points while shooting 35% from behind the arc (including a career-best 39% this season). He is also a tough defender who averages 1.1 steals per game.
Part of the problem evaluating KCP is that he tends to be a very streaky shooter. When he is good he can be very, very good. In a six-game stretch earlier this season, he hit 30 of 49 shots including 16 of 26 three-point attempts (61%). But in his last seven games, before the NBA went on hiatus, he shot only 6 for 22 (27%) from deep. Still, he’s been a valuable contributor to the team.