Ranking 24 worst Lakers starters of the Kobe Bryant era
By Tyler Watts
18. Chris Mihm
Mihm was the seventh overall pick in 2000 and ended up in Cleveland after a draft night trade. The seven-footer instantly cracked the rotation, but his stats did not jump off the screen over his first five seasons. Mihm was traded twice in nine months before joining the Lakers in August of 2004.
He had his two best years in Los Angeles. The seven-footer averaged 9.8 points, 6.7 rebounds, and 1.4 blocks in 24.9 minutes per game over 75 starts in 2004-05. Mihm was the starter the following season where he produced a career-high in minutes, points, and assists per game.
That would be Mihm’s best seasons. He suffered a severe ankle injury in March of 2006 and the subsequent surgery forced him to miss the entire 2006-07 campaign. The seven-footer was never the same. He played just 41 games over his final two seasons with the Lakers before retiring in 2009 at 29 years old.
Kobe Bryant did not look back fondly on Mihm’s two best seasons. The Los Angeles Lakers missed the playoffs in 2005 and were bounced in the first round in 2006. Kobe took a shot at Mihm in an epic rant about nearly winning the 2006 MVP award.