The Los Angeles Lakers are one of the most historic franchises in the NBA. Since the team’s origin in 1947, when they were known as the Minneapolis Lakers, they have been a part of some of the greatest moments in sports history.
The Lakers will always be one of the greatest franchises in basketball. Not only because they are tied with the Celtics for the most championship titles (17) but also because they have had some of the greatest pioneers of basketball wear their uniform. And when your franchise has been stacked with legends, there are going to be multiple players selected to the All-NBA First-Team.
Here are 11 players who made All-NBA while playing for the Lakers.
11. Los Angeles Lakers’ Legend Gail Goodrich (1)
Goodrich was drafted to the Lakers in the 1965 draft as a territorial pick. A territorial pick was when a team selected a player from a local college. This pick was introduced to create more buzz for the team’s fanbase.
Goodrich was born in Los Angeles and attended UCLA. His team won the NCAA championship in 1964 and 1965. During both championship runs, Goodrich was the team’s highest scorer. He averaged 21.5 points during the 1963-64 season and 24.8 points for the 1964-65 season.
In his first three seasons as a Laker, Goodrich did not receive much playing time. Partly due to his 6’1 height and the fact he was on a team with Jerry West, Elgin Baylor, and the fifth pick in the 1964 draft Mahdi Abdul-Rahman.
Goodrich was later picked up by the Phoenix Suns in the 1968 expansion draft. While part of the new franchise, Goodrich began to shine. He became the team’s leading scorer averaging 23.8 points in his first season with the team and 20.1 points during his second season.
He was traded back to the Lakers in 1970 and would become the team’s leading scoring during the 1971-72 regular season, with an average of 25.9 points a game. Goodrich also was the leading scorer in the playoffs, averaging 23.8 points a game.
The 1971-72 Lakers were special because they won a then-record 33 games in a row and picked up their first NBA Championship. Goodrich was a major factor in that team’s success.
However, his only selection to the All-NBA first team did not come until the1973-74 season, when he averaged 25.3 points and 5.2 assists per game.