1991–92 Los Angeles Lakers season

1991–92 Los Angeles Lakers season
Head coach Mike Dunleavy
Owner(s) Jerry Buss
Arena Great Western Forum
Results
Record 43–39 (.524)
Place Division: 6th (Pacific)
Conference: 8th (Western)
Playoff finish First Round
(Lost to Trail Blazers 1–3)
Stats @ Basketball-Reference.com
Local media
Television KCAL-TV
Prime Ticket
Radio KLAC

The 1991–92 NBA season was the Lakers' 44th season in the National Basketball Association, and 32nd in the city of Los Angeles.[1] This was the start of a new era for the Los Angeles Lakers, as they were coming from a NBA Finals defeat to the Chicago Bulls in five games, but more importantly, had to cope with the sudden retirement of their longtime superstar, Magic Johnson, due to an HIV infection.[2] However, he would make a brief return playing in the 1992 NBA All-Star Game winning the All-Star MVP award. During the offseason, the Lakers acquired Sedale Threatt from the Seattle SuperSonics. Without Johnson for the first time since 1979, the Lakers won 10 of their first 13 games including a nine-game winning streak. However, they struggled in February losing seven straight games with a 3–9 record during the month. The Lakers struggled to make the playoffs as they finished sixth in the Pacific Division with a 43–39 record. It would be considered their worst record since the 1975–76 season.[3]

As the #8 seed in the Western Conference, the Lakers were eliminated from the first round of the NBA playoffs in four games by the Portland Trail Blazers.[4] Following the season, Mike Dunleavy left and took a coaching job with the Milwaukee Bucks.

Draft picks

Round Pick Player Position Nationality College
2 52 Anthony Jones Forward  United States Oral Roberts

Roster

Los Angeles Lakers roster
PlayersCoaches
Pos.No.NameHeightWeightDOB (YYYY-MM-DD)From
SF 6 United States Brown, Chucky 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 214 lb (97 kg) North Carolina State
PF 41 United States Campbell, Elden 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 215 lb (98 kg) Clemson
C 12 Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia Divac, Vlade 7 ft 1 in (2.16 m) 243 lb (110 kg)
PF 45 United States Green, A. C. 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Oregon State
C 54 United States Haley, Jack 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 240 lb (109 kg) UCLA
SF 25 United States Owens, Keith 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 225 lb (102 kg) UCLA
PF 14 United States Perkins, Sam 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 235 lb (107 kg) North Carolina
SG 4 United States Scott, Byron 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Arizona State
SG 34 United States Smith, Tony 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Marquette
PG 2 United States Sparrow, Rory 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 175 lb (79 kg) Villanova
SG 20 United States Teagle, Terry 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Baylor
PG 3 United States Threatt, Sedale 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 175 lb (79 kg) West Virginia Tech
SF 42 United States Worthy, James 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 225 lb (102 kg) North Carolina
Head coach
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (DP) Unsigned draft pick
  • (FA) Free agent
  • (S) Suspended
  • Injured

Regular season

Season standings

Pacific Division W L PCT GB Home Road Div
y-Portland Trail Blazers5725.695—33-824-1721-9
x-Golden State Warriors5527.671231-1024-1719-11
x-Phoenix Suns5329.646436-517-2417-13
x-Seattle SuperSonics4735.5731028-1319-2216-14
x-Los Angeles Clippers4537.5491229-1216-2513-17
x-Los Angeles Lakers4339.5241424-1719-2213-17
Sacramento Kings2953.3542821-208-336-24
y - clinched division title
x - clinched playoff spot
# Western Conference
Team W L PCT GB
1 c-Portland Trail Blazers5725.695–
2 y-Utah Jazz5527.6712
3 x-Golden State Warriors5527.6712
4 x-Phoenix Suns5329.6464
5 x-San Antonio Spurs4735.57310
6 x-Seattle SuperSonics4735.57310
7 x-Los Angeles Clippers4537.54912
8 x-Los Angeles Lakers4339.52414
9 Houston Rockets4240.51215
10 Sacramento Kings2953.35428
11 Denver Nuggets2458.29333
12 Dallas Mavericks2260.26835
13 Minnesota Timberwolves1567.18342
z - clinched division title
y - clinched division title
x - clinched playoff spot

Record vs. opponents

The Lakers would be the first team in NBA history to start out an NBA season with three straight overtime games, with the first one actually being a double-overtime game. While they would wind up being 1-2 to start out the season, and would have to cope with no longer having Magic Johnson on the team soon afterwards, the Lakers would ultimately recover just enough to end their season with a 43-39 record.

1991-92 NBA Records
Team ATL BOS CHA CHI CLE DAL DEN DET GSW HOU IND LAC LAL MIA MIL MIN NJN NYK ORL PHI PHO POR SAC SAS SEA UTA WAS
Atlanta —3–12–20–50–52–02–01–41–12–01–41–10–22–23–12–03–12–22–22–22–00–21–10–21–11–12–2
Boston 1–3—3–11–33–11–11–14–01–11–12–22–02–03–22–20–22–33–25–03–11–11–12–01–12–01–13–1
Charlotte 2–21–3—0–42–31–11–11–41–10–23–20–21–11–32–31–11–30–43–13–11–10–21–12–01–10–22–2
Chicago 5–03–14–0—3–22–02–04–11–11–13–12–01–14–03–22–04–04–03–13–11–12–02–01–12–01–14–0
Cleveland 5–01–33–22–3—1–11–13–11–11–15–01–12–03–13–12–02–24–03–14–01–10–22–01–11–11–14–0
Dallas 0–21–11–10–21–1—3–20–20–44–21–11–30–41–11–13–20–20–21–10–22–20–41–30–50–41–40–2
Denver 0–21–11–10–21–12–3—0–20–42–30–20–41–30–21–12–31–10–22–02–01–31–32–21–41–31–51–1
Detroit 4–10–44–11–41–32–02–0—1–12–02–20–22–02–23–21–12–22–24–03–10–22–02–01–11–11–13–1
Golden State 1–11–11–11–11–14–04–01–1—2–22–03–23–21–12–04–02–01–12–01–13–22–35–02–23–21–32–0
Houston 0–21–12–01–11–12–43–20–22–2—1–12–22–22–01–13–21–11–12–01–11–33–13–13–21–31–42–0
Indiana 4–12–22–31–30–51–12–02–20–21–1—0–22–03–14–12–02–21–32–22–21–10–21–12–00–21–12–2
L.A. Clippers 1–10–22–00–21–13–14–02–02–32–22–0—2–32–02–04–01–10–22–01–13–22–32–32–22–31–30–2
L.A. Lakers 2–00–21–11–10–24–03–10–22–32–20–23–2—2–01–13–12–02–02–02–02–31–44–11–31–41–31–1
Miami 2–22–33–10–41–31–12–02–21–10–21–30–20–2—4–02–02–21–43–11–40–20–22–01–11–11–15–0
Milwaukee 1–32–23–22–31–31–11–12–30–21–11–40–21–10–4—2–00–41–33–13–10–20–20–21–11–11–13–1
Minnesota 0–22–01–10–20–22–33–21–10–42–30–20–41–30–20–2—0–20–20–20–20–40–41–30–60–42–30–2
New Jersey 1–33–23–10–42–22–01–12–20–21–12–21–10–22–24–02–0—2–33–13–21–11–11–11–10–20–22–3
New York 2–22–34–00–40–42–02–02–21–11–13–12–00–24–13–12–03–2—4–13–11–11–11–10–22–02–04–0
Orlando 2–20–51–31–31–31–10–20–40–20–22–20–20–21–31–32–01–31–4—3–20–20–20–21–11–10–22–3
Philadelphia 2–21–31–31–30–42–00–21–31–11–12–21–10–24–11–32–02–31–32–3—0–21–11–11–12–00–25–0
Phoenix 0–21–11–11–11–12–23–12–02–33–11–12–33–22–02–04–01–11–12–02–0—3–24–13–13–22–22–0
Portland 2–01–12–00–22–04–03–10–23–21–32–03–24–12–02–04–01–11–12–01–12–3—5–02–24–12–22–0
Sacramento 1–10–21–10–20–23–12–20–20–51–31–13–21–40–22–03–11–11–12–01–11–40–5—1–31–41–32–0
San Antonio 2–01–10–21–11–15–04–11–12–22–30–22–23–11–11–16–01–12–01–11–11–32–23–1—3–11–40–2
Seattle 1–10–21–10–21–14–03–11–12–33–12–03–24–11–11–14–02–00–21–10–22–31–44–11–3—3–12–0
Utah 1–11–12–01–11–14–15–11–13–14–11–13–13–11–11–13–22–00–22–02–02–22–23–14–11–3—2–0
Washington 2–21–32–20–40–42–01–11–30–20–22–22–01–10–51–32–03–20–43–20–50–20–20–22–00–20–2—

Playoffs

West First Round

(1) Portland Trail Blazers vs. (8) Los Angeles Lakers: Blazers win series 3–1

Last Playoff Meeting: 1991 Western Conference Finals (Los Angeles won 4-2)

Player statistics

Legend
  GP Games played   GS  Games started  MPG  Minutes per game
 FG%  Field-goal percentage  3P%  3-point field-goal percentage  FT%  Free-throw percentage
 RPG  Rebounds per game  APG  Assists per game  SPG  Steals per game
 BPG  Blocks per game  PPG  Points per game

Season

Player GP REB AST STL BLK PTS AVG
Vlade Divac3624760553540511.3
A. C. Green827621179136111613.6

Magic’s Retirement

In the 1991-92 NBA season, Johnson missed the first three games with an unspecified "stomach ailment". On November 7, 1991, Johnson made the shocking announcement that he was infected with HIV and would immediately retire.[2] Johnson discovered his condition when he tried to obtain life insurance and had failed the compulsory HIV test conducted by Lakers team doctor. Johnson gave a grave but defiant statement, stating he was happy that both his wife Cookie and her unborn child were HIV negative and that he was going to dedicate his life to spread the word about HIV prevention and promote safer sex. The NBA world was in shock, and even U. S. president George H. W. Bush mourned: "For me, Magic is a hero, a hero for anyone who loves sports."[5] Johnson immediately was listed as an injured reserve on the roster, but due to his valid contract, he continued to be paid by the Lakers franchise.

Nonetheless, Johnson was still voted into the 1992 NBA All-Star Game, and the press speculated whether he was going to make a comeback. Moreover, many colleagues were wary: as HIV can be transmitted by blood contamination, they argued that Johnson would be a deadly risk if he would get a bleeding wound and touch them. One of the most vocal opponents was Utah Jazz forward Karl Malone.[6] Johnson won the skeptics over and made a triumphant return, leading the West to a 153-113 win and being crowned All-Star MVP. The game was also a curiosity, ending prematurely when he drained a last-minute three-pointer and his colleagues refused to play further, instead running collectively on court, hugging him and exchanging high-fives. However, it remained Johnson's last NBA game until his brief return at the end of the 1995–96 season.[7]

Magic and the Dream Team

Despite being HIV positive, Johnson was chosen for the US team for the 1992 Summer Olympics. The squad was quickly dubbed the Dream Team because of its abundance of NBA stars such as Jordan, Karl Malone and Bird, but Johnson was the main attraction. At the Olympic Opening Ceremony, German tennis player Steffi Graf ordered colleague Barbara Rittner to photograph her with Johnson, and in the match against Spain, Spanish captain Juan Antonio San Epifanio and his squad demonstratively hugged him, showing that his HIV infection did not matter to them. During the tournament, Johnson struggled with knee problems and played for only a fraction of the games. The point guard position was mostly run by Utah Jazz all-time assist leader John Stockton, but Johnson's presence alone was enough to provoke standing ovations from the crowd. He used the spotlight to attempt to inspire HIV positive people in several interviews.

Awards and Records

References

  1. ↑ 1990-91 Los Angeles Lakers
  2. 1 2 "Magic Johnson Ends His Career, Saying He Has AIDS Infection". The New York Times. November 8, 1991.
  3. ↑ Los Angeles Lakers Franchise Index at basketball-reference.com
  4. ↑ "Long Lakers Season Comes to a Close". The New York Times. May 5, 2014.
  5. ↑ "On Capitol Hill, the Battle for AIDS Funds Heats Up". The New York Times. November 9, 1991.
  6. ↑ Bork (1994), pp. 90-94
  7. ↑ "Johnson Finally Says the Magic Words: 'It's On'". The New York Times. January 30, 1996.
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