Dominique Wilkins joined the Lakers pregame show before the Hawks game on 3/18 and❀ revealed that the Lakers were considering taking him #1 overall in the 1982 draft over James Worthy.
That got me thinking: who were the greatest players that were almost Lakers? Did they ever ? I'm not talking about every single free agent that's attached to the team every single year....I'm talking about draft choices and/or trades that were real close to happening. So here they are, in order:
1. Dominique Wilkins (James Worthy) - I loves me some Big Game, would have been ssssiiiiiccccckkkkk. But then that's how it works for the Lake♛rs: what may well be the team's biggest "DOH!" still netted them a Finals MVP.
2. Charles Barkley (James Worthy) - This one was also news to me. , but the backed out and sent Barkley to Phoenix instead where he led that team to a Finals ap𓄧pearance against the Bulls. The Lakers were in a state of transition with Worthy aging and Magic suddenly retiring due to HIV - Barkley may not have made them contenders right away, butꦦ almost certainly would have been around in '96 when they signed Shaq....
3. Jason Kidd (Andrew Bynum) - I was never a huge Kidd fan myself. Not that he wasn't a great player, just that I never really thought he was as good as most people think. That said, he's a hall-of-famer, , and replacing Andrew Butthead - I'm sorry, did I say "Butthead"? I 🎐meant to say "Butthead" - and upgrading the PG position at the same time is why this non-move ranks so high.
4. Sidney Moncrief (Magic Johnson) - modern fans clown Logo for even considering drafting Moncrief over Magic, but don't get it twisted: Moncriefꦰ was an elite 2-way player who would have been the perfect compliment to all star point guard Norm Nixon. Ole Doc Buss ultimately made the right call, but put some 'spect on the name of the 2-ti🌃me DPOY and be thankful the Lakers !
5. Chris Paul (Pau Gasol) ꦫ- like Jason Kidd, I always thought Chris Paul was a bit overrated. Still, pairꦆing him in his prime with Kobe and shaving cap room in the process was a stroke of genius by the least respected 5-time champion GM in any sport. the Lakers could have avoided the Nash/Howard fiasco and almost certainly made one more championship run.
6. Jason Tatum (Lonzo Ball) - I almost didn't include this one because I don't think the Lakers were seriously considering Tatum. He's also still young, so it's hard to say exactly how this one will turn out, but he🔥 has already reached several Finals for the hateꦬd Celtics while Ball is out of LA and will miss back-to-back seasons.
Honorable Mention: Grant Hill (Kobe Bryant) - this one is noted for a different reason, as it could have been the Lakers' Bowie. Yes, Grant Hill really was that good, but injuries robbꦏed him of his prime years, and he never really developed into the guy we all thought he would. Fortunately, and the rest is, well you know...
Any others? Post in the comments.
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