A few months ago I was listening to a debate that asks the question “Is Kobe Bryant the greatest Laker of all time?” I considered this debate to be laughable because at the time of the debate Bryant was not even in my top 5. I had ranked ahead of him Magic Johnson, Jerry West, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Elgin Baylor, Gail Goodrich, Shaquille O’Neal, and George Mikan. An argument also could have been made for James Worthy and Michael Cooper, while Wilt Chamberlain’s best years came while he was in Philadelphia and San Francisco. Now that Kobe Bryant has won his fifth ring the debate of the greatest Laker and where his place is among the all-time greats will be heard. However, if Kobe wants to be considered the greatest Laker of all time and the greatest player of all time which everyone knows he does, then he has some more work to do before anyone should be calling him the greatest anything.

The Lakers are like the Dallas Cowboys of the NBA. The most recognizable franchise in the league with legendary players that span over 60 years, dating back to the Mikan’s teams in Minneapolis. When you talk about the greatest Lakers there are three players you must mention before you even say Kobe, they are Johnson, West and Abdul-Jabbar. Jerry West is Mr. Laker; no one has done more or gave more to the Lakers than “the logo”. He spent 40 years in the organization as a player, coach, scout and general manager. As a GM he is responsible for the Lakers last two dynasties, the Showtime Lakers and the Shaq-Kobe version. He brought Shaq and Bryant in the same summer of 1996. If there is one problem facing West in his argument, it is the fact that he has only one championship ring. The West and Baylor led Lakers were never able to get the best of Bill Russell’s Celtics in the 1960s. Because of it Elgin Baylor retired without a ring and is considered by many to be the greatest player never to win a title in the NBA. West retired in 1974 after 14 All-Star appearances and 12 All-NBA team selections in 14 seasons. He was also team to the first four all-defensive teams.

The greatest point guard ever came to the Lakers in the fall 1979 and helped rescue the NBA in the 1980s with his legendary “Showtime Lakers”. Earvin “Magic” Johnson may have been the most complete player in the history of basketball other than Oscar Robertson. Some of Johnson’s few accomplishments include being a three-time NBA MVP, 12 All-Star appearances, 10 All-NBA teams, and nine Finals appearances. As great as his play was on the court it was Johnson’s infectious energy and personality that helped make him so popular and a legend. His showdowns with Larry Bird and the Boston Celtics is the most famous era from the most famous rivalry in the history of the NBA. Along side Magic for five championships was a man that he referred to simply as “Captain”. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar arrived back in Los Angeles in 1975 after spending his first five seasons with the Milwaukee Bucks. Abdul-Jabbar anchored the Lakers post position for 14 seasons before retiring after the 1989 season. His 14 seasons featured 14 All-Star appearances, 10 All-NBA selections, 3 MVPs and retired as the leading scorer in NBA history. It would seem that Bryant’s main competition for greatest Laker would be West and Johnson. However, Abdul-Jabbar contributions to the Lakers before the Showtime dynasty should not be overlooked. He almost single-handedly led the Lakers to the playoffs in the late 70s as the Lakers struggled to put talent around the big man.

            Now as great as Kobe Bryant has been in a Lakers uniform he has not achieved the same status that those three men hold just yet. Now some people would say that Kobe has the same number rings as both Magic and Kareem and four more than West. Also, in his defense Kobe’s championship teams were never as loaded as the Showtime Lakers. The one team that Kobe played on that was loaded imploded in front of our eyes in the 2004 Finals. However, Kobe’s teams never faced the same type of competition in the Finals than the 80s Lakers or West’s Lakers. When those teams got to the Finals they met teams with rosters stocked full of future Hall Famers. Bill Russell, Sam Jones, John Havlicek, Willis Reed, and Walt Frazier were just some of the great players West’s teams had to overcome. Then, there was Julius Erving, Moses Malone, Larry Bird, Robert Parrish, Isiah Thomas and Joe Dumars, that Johnson and Abdul-Jabbar battled in the 80s. Kobe’s teams have not faced a team of that caliber or a team with multiple future Hall Famers until this season.

Also, hurting Kobe is the way things unfolded with Shaq. The relationship between Magic Johnson and Kareem was always good and they never fought in public or through the media the way Kobe and Shaq did. Not that either man was a saint, Johnson helped get his first coach Paul Westhead fired and also tried to get James Worthy traded for his good friend Mark Aguirre. While Kareem was known to lose his cool on the court sometime, Kent Benson’s face would probably agree with me. However, Jerry West has been considered one of the classiest players in the history of the NBA. From a statistical standpoint Kobe is a better scorer than Magic but not as good as West, Kareem or Shaq. Bryant is a better defender than either Johnson or West was as he is 10 time all-defensive selection, Johnson never made an all-defensive team.

  Although Kobe has a 81 point game, countless game winning shots, and a fist full of rings, he can not be consider the greatest Laker, not right now. Now a very powerful voice has been heard in this argument when Jerry West stated about Kobe, “he's the greatest Laker player that we have ever seen." However, Jerry West was the most important Laker, Magic Johnson was the most irreplaceable Laker, and Kareem was the most valuable Laker of all time. Yes, Kobe is all three of those things right now but until he gives his life to the Lakers or rescues them from a basketball hell or makes everybody love and cheer for them, he will not be the greatest the Laker of them all.