Experts and fans alike argue about what direction the Los Angeles Lakers should take. Perhaps some comfort and perspective can be found by looking back at the team’s spectacular history.
The Lakers have experienced one of the highest levels of achievement of any professional sports team. Most remarkably, their success has spanned four distinct eras:
• The Minneapolis Lakers won five championships in six years from 1949-54
• The Original LA Lakers made nine NBA Finals appearances in 13 seasons after the team moved to LA for the 1960-61 season, and won a single title in 1972
• The Showtime Lakers were the league’s top team of the 1980’s, winning five crowns and advancing to the Finals nine times in 12 seasons
• The 2000 Lakers won five titles and made seven trips to the Finals in 11 seasons
Not only do those four eras demonstrate great sustained success, but franchise history also shows how strongly the team rebounded from prolonged dry spells on three different occasions.