| 1979–80 Los Angeles Lakers season | |||
|---|---|---|---|
NBA champions | |||
Conference champions | |||
Division champions | |||
| Head coach |
| ||
| General manager | Bill Sharman | ||
| Owner | Jerry Buss | ||
| Arena | The Forum | ||
| Results | |||
| Record | 60–22 (.732) | ||
| Place | Division: 1st (Pacific) Conference: 1st (Western) | ||
| Playoff finish | NBA champions (Defeated76ers 4–2) | ||
Stats atBasketball Reference | |||
| Local media | |||
| Television | KHJ-TV | ||
| Radio | KLAC | ||
| |||
The1979–80 Los Angeles Lakers season was the Lakers' 32nd season in theNBA and the 20th season in Los Angeles. It featured a 20-year old rookieMagic Johnson leading the Lakers to their seventh NBA Championship (second in Los Angeles), defeating thePhiladelphia 76ers led byJulius Erving in six games in theNBA Finals, which was the first NBA Finals with a three-point line. This was also the team's first season under the ownership ofJerry Buss. Magic's season represented the birth of theShowtime Lakers.
Only 13 games into his tenure, coachJack McKinney suffered a near-fatal bicycling accident November 8. General managerBill Sharman elevated assistantPaul Westhead to head coach and hired former LakerPat Riley as assistant coach.
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | Nationality | School/Club team |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | Magic Johnson | Guard |  United States | Michigan State |
| 1 | 14 | Brad Holland | Guard | United States | UCLA |
| Players | Coaches | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Head coach
Assistant(s)
Legend
Roster |
| W | L | PCT | GB | Home | Road | Div | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| y-Los Angeles Lakers | 60 | 22 | .732 | – | 37–4 | 23–18 | 19–11 |
| x-Seattle SuperSonics | 56 | 26 | .683 | 4 | 33–8 | 23–18 | 18–12 |
| x-Phoenix Suns | 55 | 27 | .671 | 5 | 37–5 | 18–22 | 19–11 |
| x-Portland Trail Blazers | 38 | 44 | .463 | 22 | 26–15 | 12–29 | 13–17 |
| San Diego Clippers | 35 | 47 | .427 | 25 | 24–17 | 11–30 | 13–17 |
| Golden State Warriors | 24 | 58 | .293 | 36 | 15–26 | 9–32 | 8–22 |
| # | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | W | L | PCT | GB | |
| 1 | c-Los Angeles Lakers | 60 | 22 | .732 | – |
| 2 | y-Milwaukee Bucks | 49 | 33 | .598 | 11 |
| 3 | x-Seattle SuperSonics | 56 | 26 | .683 | 4 |
| 4 | x-Phoenix Suns | 55 | 27 | .671 | 5 |
| 5 | x-Kansas City Kings | 47 | 35 | .573 | 13 |
| 6 | x-Portland Trail Blazers | 38 | 44 | .463 | 22 |
| 7 | San Diego Clippers | 35 | 47 | .427 | 25 |
| 8 | Chicago Bulls | 30 | 52 | .366 | 30 |
| 9 | Denver Nuggets | 30 | 52 | .366 | 30 |
| 10 | Utah Jazz | 24 | 58 | .293 | 36 |
| 11 | Golden State Warriors | 24 | 58 | .293 | 36 |
| 1980 playoff game log Total: 12–4 (Home: 7–2; Road: 5–2) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Conference Semifinals: 4–1 (home: 3–0; road: 1–1)
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Conference Finals: 4–1 (home: 2–1; road: 2–0)
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NBA Finals: 4–2 (home: 2–1; road: 2–1)
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| 1980 schedule | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Having won everything possible at the college level, Johnson decided to leave college two years early and declared himself eligible for the1979 NBA draft. TheNew Orleans Jazz originally had the first draft pick, but they had traded the pick to theLos Angeles Lakers in exchange for NBA starGail Goodrich. As a result, the Lakers drafted Johnson with the first overall pick,[2] signing him for a sizable salary of US$600,000 a year.[3]
Johnson joined afranchise which had gone through major changes. The Lakers featured a new coach inJack McKinney, a new owner inJerry Buss, and several new players. However, Johnson was most excited about the prospect of playing with his personal idol, the 7'2"centerKareem Abdul-Jabbar, who would go on to become the second leading scorer in NBA history.[3] From the first game, Johnson displayed his trademark enthusiasm for the game. When Abdul-Jabbar hit a last-secondfree throw linehook shot to win against theSan Diego Clippers, Johnson ran around the court, high-fiving and hugging everybody, causing concern that the "Buck" (as Johnson was called by Lakers announcerChick Hearn for his youth) would burn himself out. However, in that1979–80 NBA season, the rookie proved them wrong. Johnson introduced an uptempo style of basketball which the NBA described as a mix of "no-look passes off the fastbreak, pinpoint alley-oops from halfcourt, spinning feeds and overhand bullets under the basket through triple teams".[2] Fellow Lakers guardMichael Cooper even stated that: "There have been times when he [Johnson] has thrown passes and I wasn't sure where he was going. Then one of our guys catches the ball and scores, and I run back up the floor convinced that he must've thrown it through somebody."[2] This style of basketball became known as "Showtime". Given Johnson was also a prolific scorer and rebounder, he soon led the league intriple-doubles, racking up 10-points-10-rebounds-10-assists games in a rate only second to NBAHall-of-FamerOscar Robertson.[2] In addition, he expressed a raw, childlike enthusiasm which further endeared him to the fans.[4]
Johnson's average of 18.0 points, 7.7 rebounds and 7.3 assists per game was enough to make the All-Rookie Team and become a starter on theAll-Star Team, even though theNBA Rookie of the Year Award went to his rivalLarry Bird, who had joined theBoston Celtics.[5] The Lakers compiled a 60–22 win–loss record, and withPaul Westhead replacing coach McKinney as a coach after a serious bicycle accident 13 games into the season, the Lakers reached the1980 NBA Finals against thePhiladelphia 76ers. Against the fierce resistance of Sixers Hall-of-Fame forwardJulius "Doctor J" Erving andDarryl Dawkins, the Lakers took a 3–2 lead before Abdul-Jabbar went down with a sprained ankle. Coach Westhead decided to put point guard Johnson at pivot instead, and on the Sixers' home court, the rookie dominated with 42 points, 15 rebounds, seven assists and threesteals, lifting the Lakers to a 123–107 win and winning theNBA Finals MVP award. The NBA regards Johnson's clutch performance as one of the finest individual games ever.[6] Although only twenty years old, he had already won every trophy at the high school, college and professional levels. Johnson also became one of only four players to win NCAA and NBA championships in consecutive years.
| Player | GP | MPG | FG% | 3FG% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | 82 | 38.3 | .604 | .000 | .765 | 10.8 | 4.5 | 1.0 | 3.4 | 24.8 |
| Ron Boone† | 6 | 17.7 | .350 | NA | .857 | 1.8 | 1.2 | 0.8 | 0.0 | 5.7 |
| Marty Byrnes | 32 | 6.1 | .500 | NA | .867 | 0.8 | 0.4 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 2.0 |
| Kenny Carr† | 6 | 17.7 | .438 | NA | 1.000 | 3.4 | 0.2 | 0.4 | 0.2 | 3.2 |
| Jim Chones | 82 | 29.2 | .489 | .000 | .740 | 6.9 | 1.8 | 0.7 | 0.8 | 10.6 |
| Michael Cooper | 82 | 24.1 | .524 | .250 | .776 | 2.8 | 2.7 | 1.0 | 0.5 | 8.8 |
| Don Ford† | 52 | 11.2 | .508 | .000 | .821 | 1.9 | 0.7 | 0.2 | 0.3 | 3.0 |
| Spencer Haywood | 76 | 20.3 | .487 | .250 | .772 | 4.6 | 1.2 | 0.5 | 0.8 | 9.7 |
| Brad Holland | 38 | 5.2 | .423 | .200 | .938 | 0.4 | 0.6 | 0.4 | 0.0 | 2.8 |
| Magic Johnson | 77 | 36.3 | .530 | .226 | .810 | 7.7 | 7.3 | 2.4 | 0.5 | 18.0 |
| Mark Landsberger* | 23 | 16.3 | .482 | NA | .518 | 7.1 | 0.6 | 0.4 | 0.2 | 7.0 |
| Butch Lee* | 11 | 2.8 | .308 | NA | .857 | 0.7 | 0.8 | 0.1 | 0.0 | 1.3 |
| Ollie Mack† | 27 | 5.7 | .420 | .000 | .500 | 0.8 | 0.7 | 0.1 | 0.0 | 1.9 |
| Norm Nixon | 82 | 39.3 | .516 | .125 | .779 | 2.8 | 7.8 | 1.8 | 0.2 | 17.6 |
| Jamaal Wilkes | 82 | 37.9 | .535 | .176 | .808 | 6.4 | 3.0 | 1.6 | 0.3 | 20.0 |
*Stats after being traded to the Lakers.
†Stats before being traded from the Lakers.
| Player | GP | MPG | FG% | 3FG% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kareem Abdul-Jabbar | 15 | 41.2 | .572 | NA | .790 | 12.1 | 3.1 | 1.1 | 3.9 | 31.9 |
| Marty Byrnes | 4 | 2.0 | .333 | NA | .667 | 0.3 | 0.3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1.5 |
| Jim Chones | 16 | 27.4 | .407 | NA | .676 | 6.5 | 1.8 | 0.5 | 0.4 | 7.4 |
| Michael Cooper | 16 | 29.0 | .407 | .000 | .861 | 3.7 | 3.6 | 1.5 | 0.7 | 9.1 |
| Spencer Haywood | 11 | 13.2 | .472 | .000 | .813 | 2.4 | 0.4 | 0.0 | 0.5 | 5.7 |
| Brad Holland | 9 | 3.6 | .500 | .000 | 1.000 | 0.6 | 0.3 | 0.6 | 0.0 | 1.6 |
| Magic Johnson | 16 | 41.1 | .518 | .250 | .802 | 10.5 | 9.4 | 3.0 | 0.4 | 18.3 |
| Mark Landsberger | 16 | 12.2 | .362 | .000 | .833 | 4.3 | 0.1 | 0.2 | 0.1 | 3.4 |
| Butch Lee | 3 | 2.0 | NA | NA | 1.000 | 0.3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.7 |
| Norm Nixon | 16 | 40.5 | .477 | .200 | .804 | 3.5 | 7.8 | 2.0 | 0.2 | 16.9 |
| Jamaal Wilkes | 16 | 40.8 | .535 | .176 | .815 | 8.0 | 3.0 | 1.5 | 0.3 | 20.3 |
