Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is an American former basketball player, considered one of the sport's greatest ever players. He played professionally for 20 seasons for the Milwaukee Bucks and Los Angeles Lakers in the National Basketball Association (NBA), and played college basketball for the UCLA Bruins as a center. Abdul-Jabbar won a record six-time NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP) awards. He was a 19-time NBA All-Star, a 15-time All-NBA Team member, and an 11-time NBA All-Defensive Team selection. He was a member of six NBA championship teams as a player and two more as an assistant coach, and was twice voted the NBA Finals MVP. He was named to three NBA anniversary teams. Widely regarded as one of the greatest players of all time, he has been called the greatest basketball player of all time by many of his contemporaries such as Pat Riley, Isiah Thomas, and Julius Erving. Abdul-Jabbar broke the NBA's career scoring record in 1984, and held it until LeBron James surpassed him in 2023.
Patrick James Riley is an American professional basketball executive, former coach, and former player in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He has been the team president and minority owner of the Miami Heat since 1995, and he also served as the team's head coach from 1995 to 2003 and again from 2005 to 2008. Often referred to as "The Godfather", Riley is regarded as one of the greatest NBA figures of all time both as a coach and executive. He has won five NBA championships as a head coach, four with the Los Angeles Lakers during their Showtime era in the 1980s and one with the Heat in 2006. Riley is a nine-time NBA champion across his tenures as a player (1972), assistant coach (1980), head coach, and executive. Since the start of his NBA career through 2023, Riley appeared in 25 percent of all NBA Finals as a player, coach, or executive.
The NBA Finals is the annual championship series of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The Eastern and Western Conference champions play a best-of-seven series to determine the league champion. The team that wins the series is awarded the Larry O'Brien Championship Trophy, which replaced the original Walter A. Brown Trophy in 1976–77, though under the same name until 1984.
The Bill Russell NBA Finals Most Valuable Player is an annual National Basketball Association (NBA) award given since the 1969 NBA Finals. The award is decided by a panel of eleven media members, who cast votes after the conclusion of the Finals. The person with the highest number of votes wins the award. The award was originally a black trophy with a gold basketball-shaped sphere at the top, similar to the Larry O'Brien Trophy, until a new trophy was introduced in 2005.
The 1989 NBA Finals was the championship round of the 1988–89 National Basketball Association (NBA) season, and the conclusion of the 1989 NBA Playoffs. The series was a rematch of the previous year's championship round between the Eastern Conference playoff champion Detroit Pistons and the defending NBA champion and Western Conference playoff champion Los Angeles Lakers. This, along with the 1983 NBA Finals, were the only two NBA championships of the 1980s not to be won by either the Lakers or the Boston Celtics; every NBA Finals of that decade featured either the Lakers or Celtics, and sometimes both. Coincidentally, the Lakers were also swept in the 1983 NBA Finals, that time by the Philadelphia 76ers.
The 1987 NBA Finals was the championship round of the National Basketball Association (NBA)'s 1986–87 season, and the culmination of the season's playoffs. The Western Conference champion Los Angeles Lakers defeated the Eastern Conference and defending NBA champion Boston Celtics 4 games to 2. The key moment of the series was Magic Johnson's Junior sky hook in Game 4. This was the tenth time that the Celtics and Lakers met in the NBA Finals. It would be the Celtics' last Finals appearance until the two teams met in 2008.
The 1985 NBA World Championship Series was the championship round of the National Basketball Association (NBA)'s 1984–85 season, and the culmination of the season's playoffs. It featured the defending NBA champion and Eastern Conference playoff champion Boston Celtics against the Western Conference playoff champion Los Angeles Lakers.
The 1984 NBA World Championship Series was the championship round of the National Basketball Association (NBA)'s 1983–84 season, and the culmination of the season's playoffs. The Eastern Conference champion Boston Celtics defeated the Western Conference champion Los Angeles Lakers in seven games. Celtics forward Larry Bird averaged 27 points and 14 rebounds a game during the series, earning the NBA Finals Most Valuable Player (MVP).
The 1982 NBA World Championship Series was the championship round of the National Basketball Association (NBA)'s 1981–82 season, the top level of competition in men's professional basketball in North America. The series saw the Western Conference champion Los Angeles Lakers face the Eastern Conference champion Philadelphia 76ers. It was a rematch of the 1980 NBA Finals. The Lakers won 4 games to 2.
The 1986–87 NBA season was the 41st season of the National Basketball Association. The season ended with the Los Angeles Lakers winning their fourth championship of the decade, beating the Boston Celtics 4 games to 2 in the NBA Finals.
The 1979-80 NBA season was the Lakers' 32nd season in the NBA and the 20th season in Los Angeles. It featured a 20-year old rookie Magic Johnson leading the Lakers to their seventh NBA Championship, defeating the Philadelphia 76ers led by Julius Erving in six games in the NBA Finals, which was the first NBA Finals with a three-point line. This was also the team's first season under the ownership of Jerry Buss. Magic's season represented the birth of the Showtime Lakers.
This page details the all-time statistics, records, and other achievements pertaining to the Los Angeles Lakers. The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team currently playing in the National Basketball Association.
The 1987–88 season saw the Lakers win their eleventh NBA championship, defeating the Detroit Pistons in a hard-fought seven games in the NBA Finals to become the NBA's first repeat champions since the Boston Celtics did it in the 1968–69 NBA season. In doing so, the Lakers made good on Pat Riley's famous promise to repeat as champions. "I'm guaranteeing everybody here," Riley said at the civic celebrations following the Lakers’ 1987 championship win, "next year we’re gonna win it again." Before the Lakers could make good on Riley's guarantee, they swept the San Antonio Spurs in the opening round of the playoffs. The following two rounds however would not be as easy for the Lakers, but they still managed to get through a tough seven-game series against both the Utah Jazz in the Western Conference Semis and the Dallas Mavericks Western Conference Finals.
The 1993 NBA All-Star Game took place on February 21, 1993, and was an exhibition game played between the Eastern Conference and the Western Conference at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City, home of the Utah Jazz. This was the 43rd edition National Basketball Association all-star game played during the 1992-1993 season. The Western Conference went on to beat the East 135 to 132 in overtime. The slam dunk competition on All-Star Saturday night was won by Harold Miner from the Miami Heat, and the three-point shootout was won by Mark Price from the Cleveland Cavaliers. The regular season then continued on Tuesday, February 23, 1993.
The 37th National Basketball Association All-Star Game was played on February 8, 1987, at Seattle's Kingdome. Seattle SuperSonics power forward Tom Chambers was the NBA All-Star Game Most Valuable Player (MVP).
The 38th National Basketball Association All-Star Game was played on February 7, 1988, at Chicago Stadium in Chicago. The East won the game 138-133 and Michael Jordan was named the NBA All-Star Game Most Valuable Player (MVP).
The 40th National Basketball Association All-Star Game was played on February 11, 1990, at Miami Arena in Miami. Magic Johnson was named the game's MVP as well as the leading scorer with 22 points.
The Lakers–Pistons rivalry is an American professional basketball rivalry between the Los Angeles Lakers and Detroit Pistons. This rivalry, which was showcased three times in the NBA Finals, pitted the All-Star filled Lakers teams against the blue collar, team-first oriented Pistons squads. Despite playing the role of underdog in all three of their final round meetings with Los Angeles, Detroit enjoyed significant success against the Lakers, claiming the NBA title against them twice.
The 1982–83 NBA season was the Lakers' 35th season in the NBA and the 23rd season in Los Angeles. The Lakers were attempting to become the first team since the Boston Celtics in 1969 to repeat as NBA Champions. However, on April 10, 1983, rookie and number one pick in the 1982 draft James Worthy injured his leg while attempting a putback in a home loss against Phoenix, ending his season. Even without Worthy for the playoffs, the Lakers made it to the NBA Finals, only to be swept in four games by the Julius Erving and Moses Malone led Philadelphia 76ers. This was Pat Riley's first full season as Lakers head coach.
The 1989–90 NBA season was the Lakers' 42nd season in the National Basketball Association, and 30th in the city of Los Angeles. The Lakers drafted Yugoslavian center Vlade Divac with the 26th overall pick in the 1989 NBA draft. Despite the retirement of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and an NBA Finals defeat in which they were swept in four games by the Detroit Pistons, the Lakers got off to a fast start winning ten of their first eleven games, and holding a 35–11 record at the All-Star break, on their way finishing the regular season with a league-best 63–19 record.
