Gail Goodrich

Gail Goodrich was part of the awesome 1971-1972 Laker team that won 33 consecutive games. That team then went on to bring the city of Los Angeles its first NBA trophy. Gail was the leading scorer on the team that year despite having the great Jerry West and Wilt Chamberlain on the team. In 1996 Goodrich was elected into the Basketball Hall of Fame. His impact upon the Laker franchise extended far beyond his playing years, because late in his career, the Lakers traded Goodrich to the New Orleans Jazz for the Jazz' first pick in the 1979 NBA draft. When the Jazz had a poor record in the 1978-79 season, that pick ended up being the first overall pick in the draft; with it, the Lakers chose Earvin "Magic" Johnson. For his career, Goodrich was a 5-time All-Star and was All-NBA in 1973-74. He is still the third all-time scorer among lefties in NBA history. At the time of his retirement in 1979, Goodrich was 11th all-time in scoring and 10th all-time in assists.