There may be no such thing as a lukewarm basketball fan, but if there is, it's surely not a Los Angeles Lakers fan. If you are a fan, and you've followed the Lakers for a while, you have witnessed some basketball the most amazing, edge-of-your-seat or on-your-feet performances in basketball history.
The history of the basketball goes all the way back to 1946, before the NBA came into existence. Then it was the National Basketball League, and the team started out as the Detroit Gems. They did not start shining, however, until they moved to Minneapolis and the "Land of 10,000 Lakes", and became - guess what? The Lakers. The team proceeded to win the national championship in their first season of play as the soon-to-be very well known Lakers.
The 1950's brought major triumphs and major disappointments. Players left or were traded for new ones, coaches came and went, and in general a lot of changes occurred, but out of six appearances in the Finals, the Lakers came away with the championship five times. They were definitely a team to be noticed!
It is kind of interesting that when the team moved to Los Angeles in 1960, the name remained the same, and they became the Los Angeles Lakers (despite the lack of lakes) and by golly, they have been ever since. They really started getting a lot of notice when Wilt Chamberlain became part of the team, and they went to the NBA Finals in 1962. Most fans will know the score on that one: the Lakers lost to the Boston Celtics - not for the first time!
The Lakers got to the Finals eight times during the 1960's, and each time they fought a battle royal, but they lost, eight times. Did that faze them? Not so anyone would notice. They won 33 consecutive games in 1971, a record which still stands in every major professional sport. During the rest of the ?70's, aside from the excitement the team never failed to bring to the games, a couple of events stand out. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and later Earvin "Magic" Johnson were added to the mix of players, and TV commentator Pat Riley was hired as assistant coach. Riley moved up, of course, to the head coach position, and what a marvelous job he did!
The Lakers met up with the team that has become their arch rival again in 1984. The Boston Celtics beat them in the Finals, but Kareem Abdul-Jabbar set an NBA record anyway. When the Lakers and Celtics met at the 1985 Finals at Boston Gardens, the then 37-year-old Kareem provided a mighty assist, and the Lakers finally beat their nemesis on the Celtics' own turf. The victory celebration for players and fans was something to behold!
In 2000, the Los Angeles Lakers moved their home base from the Forum in Inglewood to the Staples Center in L.A., which seems to suit them. They also hired coach Phil Jackson who, as well as former coach Pat Riley, has set all-time records in the industry As the 2000's rolled on, the Lakers incorporated some moves they call the "triangle offense", and the excitement just kept happening. Shaquille O'Neal was awarded the Finals MVP for his third consecutive year, and coach Phil Jackson got his ninth Championship Head Coach award.
Throughout their history, the Lakers behind-the-scenes life has been fraught with drama and often dissension. There are a lot of stories that have never been told (and most likely never will be). What continues to be of most interest to their fans, however, is the way they rebound from disaster, and snatch victory from almost certain defeat.
The Los Angeles Lakers have gone through some "glory days" and some fairly dark nights; key players have suffered injury or just dissatisfaction and gone elsewhere, but sometimes returned, and coaches have been both mediocre and superb. This team has a lot of history, and it's all fascinating. The bottom line right now is: the Lakers just keep on winning!
Get yourself some tickets to see the Lakers at home, and join some starry company.Maybe the proximity of the Hollywood Hills has something to do with it, but fans of the Lakers don't seem to care too much where they sit at Staples Center. They're on their feet most of the time anyway, yelling along with thousands of other fans, "GO, LAKERS!"
By Matt Ryan, article sponsored by StubPass.com. StubPass sells Los Angeles Lakers Tickets, sporting event tickets, concert event tickets, theater tickets, NBA Tickets and more to your favorite events around the world.
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