The Lakers: A Basketball Journey - Softcover

Lazenby, Roland

4.08

39 ratings by Goodreads

9781570280627: The Lakers: A Basketball Journey

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1570280622 ISBN 13: 9781570280627

Publisher: Masters Pr, 1995

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Colorful, immediate, and written with a flair and a deep understanding of the game, The Lakers is much more than a dusty recounting of games lost and won; it is charged with the dreams and disappointments that have driven the Lakers for nearly five decades. "The best, most in-depth book ever written on the Lakers."--Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Photos.

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From Kirkus Reviews:

A lively history of the Los Angeles Lakers, focusing on Earvin ``Magic'' Johnson's infection with the HIV virus. Basketball-expert Lazenby (The NBA Finals, 1990, etc.--not reviewed) opens by describing the NBA's ``Studhorse Sweepstakes'' and Johnson's reputation as a ladies' man, his dramatic announcement of having contracted the virus, and his October 1992 comeback attempt after a one-year layoff. Although Johnson had played in the 1991 All-Star Game and on the ``Dream Team'' at the Barcelona Olympics, the 1992 preseason games were his first real competitive test since his announcement--but his most difficult challenges proved to be the daily press conferences, the nasty rumors, and other players' complaints and concerns about possible infection. Johnson's abrupt second retirement was only a formal coda, Lazenby says, to the ``swan song for Showtime''--the glamour and excitement generated by the Lakers during the 1980's, when they captured five championships. With little regard for strict chronology, Lazenby traces the Lakers' history back to 1946, when the Detroit Gems, with an awful 4-40 record, were sold to a Minneapolis group for $15,000. With George Mikan, ``the first dominant giant,'' and Jim Pollard, the ``first jumping jack,'' the Lakers won six titles early on. Since 1960, when they moved to L.A., their storied players have included Jerry West, now the general manager; Wilt Chamberlain; Elgin Baylor; and Kareem Abdul- Jabbar, whose unforgettable farewell tour in 1988-89 is given some space here. The Lakers have missed the playoffs only four times in 46 years--winning 13 championships and making it to the finals another 13 times--and Lazenby's recaps of seasons and particular games, especially the dramatic 1987 finals against the Detroit Pistons, bring the excitement on to the page. Captures the glory days, as well as moments both sweet and bitter. (Photographs--eight pages color, eight pages b&w--not seen) -- Copyright �1993, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

From Booklist:

The Los Angeles Lakers are the second most successful franchise in the National Basketball Association, and their success has spanned the league's history. There were championships in the 1950s as the Minneapolis Lakers, near misses in the 1960s, a couple of titles in the 1970s, and, of course, the glorious 1980s when, led by Magic Johnson, the Lakers piled up five crowns. Lazenby focuses on the Magic years but flashes back to parallel situations from the past. There is very little new information here, but the author does offer an insightful long-term view of a sport in which teams are often judged on only this season, this series, or even this game. Current general manager Jerry West kept the Lakers at or near the top through the 1980s with a series of shrewd moves in which the key element was not only on-court talent but off-court attitude. Laker fans will devour this volume, but anyone with even a passing interest in the NBA will find it fascinating. Wes Lukowsky

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