Greatest Lakers of all time: 40- Sedale Threatt
- 5 seasons, 386 games
- 11.9 PPG
- 5.2 assists
- 1.4 steals
The Lakers traded three second-round draft picks, none of whom amounted to much, for Sedale in 1991 to back up star Magic Johnson at point guard as the Showtime Era wound down.
But fate intervened before the season began when Magic tested positive for the HIV virus and was forced to prematurely retire. So Threatt, a reserve for most of his previous 8 NBA years, was suddenly Magic’s replacement as the starting PG.
Sedale handled the promotion surprisingly well, putting together two back-to-back career years averaging 15 points, 7 assists and nearly 2 steals (earning him the nickname “The Thief”) per game for Lakers teams that featured James Worthy, Byron Scott, Sam Perkins, AC Green and Vlade Divac. Those squads were able to make the playoffs each year but were never good enough to make it out of the first round.
Sedale started to slow down the following season at age 32 and lost his starting job to rookie Nick Van Exel. He continued to play reasonably well for the team for a total of 5 years, compiling Lakers averages of ranks 5th in assists, 10th in steals, 34th in PPG and 30th in career points.