The Los Angeles Lakers, rating 5.00 (since 1948-49) [1948-49 to 1959-60, Minneapolis Lakers, rating 5.50] [1960-61 to 2009-10, Los Angeles Lakers, rating 4.88] As a fan of a Western Conference team, and I suppose any team other than the Lakers, it sickens me to rate them number one, and I'm sure Laker fans wouldn't have me react any other way. But they are (give me a moment)... the best franchise in the history of the league. They've been to almost half of all NBA Finals, winning it 16 times. In their 62 seasons of existence they've only missed the playoffs five times. I'm sure you don't need any emphasis on how awesome that is, especially considering that only half of all NBA teams each season make the playoffs at all, but take the Charlotte Bobcats who've been in the league for six seasons. They are already tied with the Lakers for playoffs missed. Of course having the advantage of being one of the first franchises in the league obligates some teams to start out well, but the Lakers just never really fell off the boat, winning multiple titles since their very first season in the league. Occasionally they have had an off year, but of those five misses, three of them were one-time drops, and only two of them came in succession of each other. Needless to say, they have most certainly not spread the wealth, and every Western Conference team sorely hates them for it. They have had several dynasties; the 1948-49 to 1953-54 George Mikan Minneapolis years, the 1958-59 to 1972-73 Jerry West/Elgin Baylor saga, the 1979-80 to 1990-91 Magic Johnson/Kareem Abdul-Jabbar reign, the 1999-00 to 2003-04 Shaq/Kobe years, and the current 2007-08 to the present Kobe/Pau iteration (although some people combine the last two). They've collected many rivalries, particularly the Boston Celtics, and have managed to piss off so many teams in the Western Conference that I would consider the entire conference to collectively be their rivals. Ask any Western Conference team who their rival is, and if they can think of one they will probably pick the Lakers. The Spurs, Suns, Trail Blazers, Kings/Royals, SuperSonics/Thunder, Warriors, Jazz, Rockets, Nuggets, and so on have all had plenty of unsuccessful cracks at them. In the East, the Celtics aren't their only haters, with plenty of it coming from the 76ers/Nationals, the Pistons, the Knicks, and even the old STL Hawks, though no one in Atlanta would know. Laker fans, you don't know what real disappointment is. But I'm sure you're not losing any sleep over it. Now, on to the Lakers top 10%: Is Kobe the greatest Laker ever? Well... almost. If next season does ultimately happen, despite what many consider will inevitably start with a lockout, he will be according to my ratings. Until then, or unless the entire season is canceled, the Lakers break up, and a rare rebuilding process occurs, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar will hold onto the top spot. Kobe is a very close second, with Magic slightly behind him in third, and The Logo Jerry West showing up in fourth. Laker players typically have a higher rating than most other franchise's players because they seem to have an abundance of stars, and they tend to be a part of multiple championship teams which really ups the achievement number. All-Laker Team C - Kareem Abdul-Jabbar F - Elgin Baylor F - Jerry West G - Kobe Bryant G - Magic Johnson B - Shaquille O'Neal B - James Worthy B - George Mikan Top 10% out of 337, (current players noted with asterisk - *) 1. 206.003 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 1975-76 to 1988-89 2. 205.176 Kobe Bryant 1996-97 to 2009-10 - * 3. 204.729 Magic Johnson 1979-80 to 1990-91, 1995-96 4. 199.536 Jerry West 1960-61 to 1973-74 5. 179.693 Elgin Baylor 1958-59 to 1971-72 6. 140.382 Shaquille O'Neal 1996-97 to 2003-04 7. 124.600 James Worthy 1982-83 to 1993-94 8. 123.958 George Mikan 1948-49 to 1953-54, 1955-56 9. 117.214 Michael Cooper 1978-79 to 1989-90 10. 113.597 Vern Mikkelsen 1949-50 to 1958-59 11. 101.417 Jim Pollard 1948-49 to 1954-55 12. 97.770 Byron Scott 1983-84 to 1992-93, 1996-97 13. 95.931 Wilt Chamberlain 1968-69 to 1972-73 14. 90.032 Derek Fisher 1996-97 to 2003-04, 2007-08 to 2009-10 - * 15. 89.494 AC Green 1985-86 to 1992-93, 1999-00 16. 88.445 Gail Goodrich 1965-66 to 1967-68, 1970-71 to 1975-76 17. 88.365 Slater Martin 1949-50 to 1955-56 18. 79.262 Jamaal Wilkes 1977-78 to 1984-85 19. 78.410 Rudy LaRusso 1959-60 to 1966-67 20. 70.836 Kurt Rambis 1981-82 to 1987-88, 1993-94 to 1994-95 21. 67.493 Norm Nixon 1977-78 to 1982-83 22. 63.579 Happy Hairston 1969-70 to 1974-75 23. 63.003 Clyde Lovellette 1953-54 to 1956-57 24. 62.184 Pau Gasol 2007-08 to 2009-10 - * 25. 60.620 Rick Fox 1997-98 to 2003-04 26. 60.582 Robert Horry 1996-97 to 2002-03 27. 59.987 Lamar Odom 2004-05 to 2009-10 - * 28. 58.485 Leroy Ellis 1962-63 to 1965-66, 1971-72 to 1972-73 29. 58.026 Vlade Divac 1989-90 to 1995-96, 2004-05 30. 57.195 Hot Rod Hundley 1957-58 to 1962-63 31. 55.801 Elden Campbell 1990-91 to 1998-99 32. 55.259 Mychal Thompson 1986-87 to 1990-91 33. 54.742 Whitey Skoog 1951-52 to 1956-57 34. 54.300 Eddie Jones 1994-95 to 1998-99
