Through the 2024-25 season, the Los Angeles Lakers have had a total of 506 players suit up for them, going back to their days in Minneapolis. Some were forgettable, some were serviceable, some were good and a select few were flat-out legendary.
As the Lakers approach their 80th season of existence (they were founded back in 1946 as the Detroit Gems in the National Basketball League), LeBron Wire is taking a look at each player who has worn their jersey, whether it has been a purple and gold one or the ones they donned back in the Midwest during their early years.
Big man Jelani McCoy once spent the 2001-02 season with the Lakers. He was a local product, having grown up in San Diego, and he played three seasons of college basketball at the University of California, Los Angeles. He was taken by the Seattle SuperSonics in the second round of the 1998 NBA Draft and played his first three pro seasons with them.
The Lakers signed him as a free agent just prior to the start of training camp in 2001. The 6-foot-10 center appeared in just 21 games that year and averaged 1.2 points and 1.2 rebounds in 5.0 minutes a game, and he wasn’t on their playoff roster. The Lakers went on to win their third straight NBA championship in June 2002.
McCoy played parts of four more seasons with the Toronto Raptors, Cleveland Cavaliers, Atlanta Hawks and Denver Nuggets. He has also had several short stints in some foreign leagues, especially after his NBA career ended.
