Leaderboard

So when do player abilities factor in? Because Michael Cooper has as many rings as Magic as well, so does that make him a greater Laker than Kobe Bryant? The Devean George strawman. You have to lead the team and win, not just win. I think Fisher is the worst starting point guard in the league and has been for some time yet he has four rings. Player abilities factor in when discussing who is the greatest overall player for the Lakers. Then and only then Kobe wins. But that's not the question, it's greatest Laker. btw Magic Minions (props for that) are fewer in number than the Kult. Magic has one more ring than Bryant, Precisely, which makes him a more valuable and greater Laker. How can you possibly put someone ahead of Magic who has less rings? You can't. It's absurd. The greatest contribution to the franchise is rings. Magic has more and he was the leader of those teams. with a far superior team over a course of a full decade of basketball. That's it. Earvin was a Laker for 13 seasons, Bryant at 14. Kobe has had the greater performances, and he's the better overall player (this you agree with). Superior team in a different era when it was possible to build a super team, but they also faced superior opponents. Bird Celtics, Doc Sixers and the Bad Boys would wipe the floor with the Laker Threepeat finals opponents. The Lakers were far superior but so were their finals opponents, can't cherry pick one side of it while ignoring the other half of the equation. So other than championship rings, which Magic has only one-upped on Bryant...what else has Johnson done for the LAKERS that Kobe hasn't? Three more finals appearances. Made the franchise immensely valuable which allowed Staples to happen etc. Kobe has certainly played a role in expanding the value of the franchise as well, but Magic's task was more difficult, he entered a league in trouble and when he left the league was transformed. That gets swept under the table a lot. It shouldn't. The Magic/Bird/Jordan trio is what changed basketball in the 80's, not just Magic himself...and the truth is, it was Jordan who brought the interest back to the playgrounds, with kids wanting to be like him, and it was he who raked in deals with the likes of Nike, McDonald's, and many others that significantly helped the NBA turn into a media giant, but even then, that wasn't just for the Lakers, Celtics or Bulls, that was for the league. Magic's style of basketball brought fans and media back to the game. Finals on tape delay. Unthinkable now. Magic vs. Bird was the foundation. Magic's joy for the game was infectious. Find a fan who wasn't fond of Showtime, how basketball should be played. Magic was the engine, Bird was the rival. Jordan came after Magic and Bird had already brought the league back from the drug era. What Jordan did was pioneer athlete as pitchman and usher in a generation that saw a shift from team only to player first. Magic and Bird brought the game back. Jordan introduced the star-driven NBA business model. The impact isn't shown today because the NBA is already global. Is there any doubt that Kobe could've done the same thing, assuming he came into the league with someone like LeBron at a time when the NBA needed that extra boost? Kobe's talent would be the same, his charisma, not so much. The greatest Laker should be the greatest player to play in a Lakers jersey. Being the better overall player has a lot to do with that, or else Cooper trumps Bryant, and that's just ridiculous, to say the least. The greatest Laker should be the leader who delivered the most rings and had the most impact on the franchise. The best overall player is a different argument. It's player vs. player. Greatest Laker means most value to the Lakers. That's undeniably Magic. By the way, I think it's close enough to be a tie, in my opinion...but there's only one choice available for each member, so yeah... Can't be a tie in my eyes. Magic has more rings and more impact for the franchise. Kobe may well surpass Magic, but he will have to get at least five rings before it can be debated. So we can revisit this in June. Until then the greatest Laker is Magic Johnson.

I just awoke from a dream that the bears were up 10-6 or 10-9 midway through the third quarter, lets see if I am right...

Mo's a small guy. He's a skinny 3 point shooting point guard so one would expect him to bounce off of Kobe like that. I just can't imagine someone acting from a hit like that when they couldn't even see it coming, there just isn't enough time to react and think "I should flop to get the call."

Kobe is the best overall player to put on a Lakers uniform, so he's the greatest Laker of all-time.

LOL we're so pathetic.

Don't you all live in the same house?

Grown men shouldn't be bull rushing into each other because they are frustrated with their team's performance.