Is Anthony Davis trade biggest in Lakers’ history?
the Anthony Davis trade the biggest in Lakers’ history? Well, that will largely depend on what happens from here, but it has a chance to join an illustrious list of transactions that have changed the course of NBA history.
Lakers get Wilt Chamberlain: The Lakers landed the man who rewrote the NBA record book in the summer of 1968 for Jerry Chambers, Archie Clark and Darrall Imhoff. The move teamed “The Big Dipper” up with fellow Hall of Famers Jerry West and Elgin Baylor; West and Chamberlain would finally bring Los Angeles a title in 1972.
Kareem heads to L.A.: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was traded by the Bucks to the Lakers in June 1975 for Junior Bridgeman, Dave Meyers, Elmore Smith and Brian Winters. “Cap” would win three more MVP awards with the Lakers and add five championships to his résumé during the team’s “Showtime” years in the 1980s. He won Finals MVP honors in 1985 and would retire in 1989 as the game’s all-time leading scorer.
Lakers scoop up Magic pick: Hall of Famer Gail Goodrich was the leading scorer for the 1972 champion Lakers, but his run with the team ended in 1976. He signed with the thenNew Orleans Jazz, and the teams arranged a convoluted deal involving multiple firstround picks to address compensation rules of the day. One of the picks the Lakers received was the Jazz’s 1979 first-rounder. That pick ended up being the No. 1 overall selection, which the Lakers used to pick Magic Johnson.
Lakers get another No. 1: In February 1980 the Lakers sent Don Ford and a first-round pick in that year’s draft to the Cleveland Cavaliers for a 1982 firstIs round pick and Butch Lee. When 1982 rolled around that pick ended up being No. 1 overall, and the defending champion Lakers used it on UNC stalwart James Worthy. “Big Game James” would help the Lakers to three more titles in the ’80s, winning Finals MVP in 1988 thanks in part to a legendary triple-double in Game 7, and ending up in the Hall of Fame.
Move nets the Mamba: In July 1996, the Lakers finalized a move to send center Vlade Divac to the Charlotte Hornets for Kobe Bryant, the 13th pick in the draft. The high school guard came into his own during the late 1990s, then teamed with Shaquille O’Neal — who the Lakers landed that same summer — to win three consecutive titles to kick off the 2000s. Bryant would spend his entire 20year career with the Lakers, winning an MVP, two more titles (and two Finals MVPs) and finishing as the third-leading scorer in NBA history.