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Magic Johnson, James Worthy, Kareem Abdul Jabbar, Pat Riley, Shaquille O’Neal, Kobe Bryant, Phil Jackson and Pau Gasol are few stars who fans often associate the Los Angeles Lakers with. The man behind bringing such great talented players and coaches to Hollywood, who is often forgotten, is Dr. Jerry Buss.
During his 33 years ownership, the Los Angeles Lakers won 10 championships in 16 Finals appearances, making him the most successful owner in the history of North American professional sports.
Magic Johnson, one of the greatest Lakers of all-time had this to say of Dr. Buss on ESPN:
“He was a visionary, he was a trailblazer. He did things that were, at that time, people thought wasn’t cool, wasn’t proper.”
Magic puts it very appropriately – Dr. Buss has always backed his decision making.
For example, when he took over the ownership in 1979 and the Lakers had obtained the number one draft pick, he chose to draft a player by the name Ervin “Magic” Johnson despite the then head coach Jerry West wanting to draft Sidney Moncrief out of Arkansas.
It has been such decision making which has defined Dr. Buss’ tenure as the owner of the Los Angeles Lakers. More often than not it has brought success to the franchise.
Under him, the Lakers franchise primarily enjoyed success and were considered title contenders during the ‘Showtime’ era and the first decade entering the new millennium, each period contributing 5 championships to the already rich history of the Lakers franchise.
Showtime era
It all began with Dr. Buss wanting to transform the way the game of basketball was perceived by the audience. He ordered the formation of the Lakers girls to perform during the breaks and for the music to play through the PA system at the Forum.
These decisions sound quite ordinary, don’t they?
They weren’t in the 80’s. The Lakers franchise was the first to introduce a music band and a group of girls dancing during the breaks.
He stressed on the audience being entertained and wanted the Lakers to adopt a fast-paced game. He believed the audience being involved would strengthen the home court advantage of the Lakers.
In Magic Johnson, first overall pick of the 1979 draft, he found a versatile player who could run the fast paced offense Dr. Buss wished the Lakers to adopt and under Magic’s performance, coupled with the leadership of Kareem Abdul Jabbar, the Lakers won their first championship in the first season that Dr. Buss took charge.
He did not rest on winning the title; instead he made key decisions to win more. Over the next two years he named Pat Riley the head coach of the Lakers and named ‘Mr Clutch’ Jerry West as the General Manager, both proving to be extremely instrumental in the rise and domination of the Showtime dynasty.
He constantly added players with immense amount of skill and talent to the roster, to help the Lakers win as many as they can.
Drafting James Worthy as the first overall pick in 1982 was huge; he went on to be named a seven time all-star and the 1988 NBA Finals MVP.
A.C. Green was drafted by the Lakers in 1985 and played a key role in the last two titles of the ‘Showtime’. His numbers might not impress many, but he proved to be a consistent role player.
In order to assist the aging Kareem in stopping the talented Boston front court duo of Robert Parish and Kevin McHale, he acquired Mychal Thompson in the February of 1987. It paid off, Thompson played stellar defense helping the Lakers defeat the Celtics in the 1987 NBA Finals.
As these great players retired, the ‘Showtime’ era was put to rest by the Michael Jordan led Chicago Bulls. What followed was years of rebuilding until the next championship made its way back to Los Angeles in 2000.
First Decade of the New Millennium (2000-2010)
The Los Angeles Lakers started off the new millennium with a three-peat.
However the build-up to this three-peat started way back in the summer of 1996 when Dr. Buss acquired Shaquille O’Neal, the then Orlando Magic’s rising star, and Kobe Bryant, a talented youngster from Philadelphia. A series of disappointing Playoff performances led to the appointment of Phil Jackson as the new head coach, a year after he resigned from the Chicago Bulls.
His appointment as head coach immediately led to three consecutive NBA titles led by their superstar duo of Bryant and Shaq.
Key acquisitions decisions made by Dr. Buss strengthened the roster with strong role players to help the star duo.
Drafting Derek Fisher in 1996 and acquiring Robert Horry from the Phoenix Suns midway through the 1996-97 season were key decisions made that played a huge role in the three-peat.
In the years after three-peat, the Lakers were made into a superstar team with the acquisition of Gary Payton and Karl Malone.
None of the acquisitions however could bring the gold back to Hollywood and with the chemistry between Bryant and Shaq failing to a point beyond repair, Dr. Buss decided to give in to Shaq’s demand for a trade and stuck with a younger Bryant, who he convinced to stay with the Lakers.
A move which would earn him and the Lakers franchise another two rings when they won back to back titles in 2009 and 2010. It wasn’t easy though; Lakers went through a rebuilding phase consisting of two mediocre seasons in 2005-06 and 2006-07.
Dr. Buss remained patient and along with Phil Jackson, built a strong, young and talented team around Bryant through the drafts. Players such as Jordan Farmar, Sasha Vujacic and Lamar Odom all either acquired through a trade or were drafted by the Lakers and were a key part of the championship run in 2009.
However the acquisition of Pau Gasol was considered the final move which would make the Lakers a title contender once again. His impact was clearly seen, as the Lakers made it three Finals appearances in his first three years with the franchise.
David Stern giving a speech at the memorial service held at Nokia Theatre for Dr. Jerry Buss three days after his death.
He fell victim to a kidney failure and passed away on February 18th of this year. A memorial service was held at Nokia Theatre 3 days later where many coaches and players who played for him attended and spoke.
A true visionary
Defeat or Victory, Dr. Buss always took measures to get better next season or the next game. He was never shy at using money to rope in players to the roster and was a huge factor behind Lakers constructing a 100 million dollar starting line-up consisting of Steve Nash and Dwight Howard prior to the 2012-2013 season.
His decision throughout have been the trademark of his tenure and have always stood out from the rest of the owners in the league.
His Legacy
He was announced as a member of the 2010 induction class of the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2010.
“The NBA has lost a visionary owner whose influence on our league is incalculable and will be felt for decades to come,” David Stern said. “More importantly, we have lost a dear and valued friend.”
I guess we can all agree with NBA Commissioner on this one.
Kobe Bryant said, “His impact is felt worldwide”.
He would always be remembered as one of most successful and respected sports owners in the history of professional sports in North America.
