Rise of the Los Angeles Lakers
Michael Ybarra
MGMT 365
5/10/12
Rise of the Los Angeles Lakers For over fifty years now the City of Angels, Los Angeles, has been home to one of the most historical and successful franchises in the National Basketball Association (NBA). With so many accomplishments encompassed in its sixty-plus year journey, the story of the Los Angeles Lakers is indeed a colorful one. Sporting the infamous purple and gold, the Los Angeles Lakers have become the second most decorated team in the NBA with a total of sixteen national championships to date; just one behind that other team out in Boston. Some of the greatest players to ever set foot on a court have donned a Laker jersey; and along with these legends, have come some of the greatest games in NBA history. Kobe Bryant, a future Hall of Famer and the face of today’s franchise, is set to be another remarkable addition to the Laker legacy. There is no question then, why high expectations fill the minds of millions of Laker fans every year. See, in Los Angeles, anything less than a national championship is considered a losing season, and why not? After all, the Lakers have had a winning reputation from the very start.
The Beginning
The Minneapolis Lakers The year was 1946, and Sid Hartman, a young sportswriter for the Minneapolis Star Tribune, was on the hunt for a new team to settle in the Twin City area. As an ambitious young man, “Hartman simply longed to manage a pro club. It was an escape fantasy for him” (Lazenby, 1993, pg. 67). Backed by investors Morris Chalfen and Ben Berger from Minnesota, Hartman set his eyes on the disbanding Detroit Gems. However, before anything was set in stone, the group of entrepreneurs decided to test the waters first. After a successful exhibition game held at the Minneapolis Auditorium between the Oshkosh All-Stars and the Sheboygan Redskins, Hartman was convinced professional basketball would be great for the city. The Gems finished the 1946-47 National Basketball League (NBL)
MGMT 365
5/10/12
Rise of the Los Angeles Lakers For over fifty years now the City of Angels, Los Angeles, has been home to one of the most historical and successful franchises in the National Basketball Association (NBA). With so many accomplishments encompassed in its sixty-plus year journey, the story of the Los Angeles Lakers is indeed a colorful one. Sporting the infamous purple and gold, the Los Angeles Lakers have become the second most decorated team in the NBA with a total of sixteen national championships to date; just one behind that other team out in Boston. Some of the greatest players to ever set foot on a court have donned a Laker jersey; and along with these legends, have come some of the greatest games in NBA history. Kobe Bryant, a future Hall of Famer and the face of today’s franchise, is set to be another remarkable addition to the Laker legacy. There is no question then, why high expectations fill the minds of millions of Laker fans every year. See, in Los Angeles, anything less than a national championship is considered a losing season, and why not? After all, the Lakers have had a winning reputation from the very start.
The Beginning
The Minneapolis Lakers The year was 1946, and Sid Hartman, a young sportswriter for the Minneapolis Star Tribune, was on the hunt for a new team to settle in the Twin City area. As an ambitious young man, “Hartman simply longed to manage a pro club. It was an escape fantasy for him” (Lazenby, 1993, pg. 67). Backed by investors Morris Chalfen and Ben Berger from Minnesota, Hartman set his eyes on the disbanding Detroit Gems. However, before anything was set in stone, the group of entrepreneurs decided to test the waters first. After a successful exhibition game held at the Minneapolis Auditorium between the Oshkosh All-Stars and the Sheboygan Redskins, Hartman was convinced professional basketball would be great for the city. The Gems finished the 1946-47 National Basketball League (NBL)
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