1993–94 Los Angeles Lakers season
NBA professional basketball team season / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Dear Wikiwand AI, let's keep it short by simply answering these key questions:
Can you list the top facts and stats about 1993–94 Los Angeles Lakers season?
Summarize this article for a 10 year old
The 1993–94 NBA season was the Lakers' 46th season in the National Basketball Association, and 34th in the city of Los Angeles.[1] The Lakers received the twelfth overall pick in the 1993 NBA draft, and selected George Lynch from the University of North Carolina,[2][3][4][5] and also selected Nick Van Exel from the University of Cincinnati with the 37th overall pick.[6][7][8][5] During the off-season, the team acquired Sam Bowie from the New Jersey Nets,[9][10][11] and re-signed free agent and former Lakers forward Kurt Rambis.[12][13] The Lakers continued to struggle as they lost 9 of their first 12 games, and held a 18–29 record at the All-Star break.[14] Head coach Randy Pfund was fired after a 27–37 start, and was replaced with interim Bill Bertka for the next two games.[15][16]
1993–94 Los Angeles Lakers season | |||
---|---|---|---|
Head coach |
| ||
General manager | Jerry West | ||
Owner(s) | Jerry Buss | ||
Arena | Great Western Forum | ||
Results | |||
Record | 33–49 (.402) | ||
Place | Division: 5th (Pacific) Conference: 9th (Western) | ||
Playoff finish | Did not qualify | ||
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com | |||
Local media | |||
Television | KCAL-TV Prime Sports West | ||
Radio | KLAC | ||
|
With the team out of playoff position and struggling in March, they decided to bring former Laker and retired All-Star guard Magic Johnson back as their new coach.[17][18][19][20][21] At midseason, the team acquired Danny Schayes from the Milwaukee Bucks.[22][23] Under Magic, the Lakers won five of their next six games. However, they lost their final ten games of the season and finished fifth in the Pacific Division with a 33–49 record, missing the playoffs for the first time since 1975–76.[24]
Vlade Divac led the team with 14.2 points, 10.8 rebounds and 1.4 blocks per game, while second-year guard Anthony Peeler averaged 14.1 points per game, but only played just 30 games due to a stress fracture in his left leg, and tendonitis in his right leg,[25][26][27] and Van Exel averaged 13.6 points and 5.8 assists per game, and was selected to the NBA All-Rookie Second Team. In addition, Sedale Threatt provided the team with 11.9 points, 4.2 assists and 1.4 steals per game, while Elden Campbell provided with 12.3 points, 6.8 rebounds and 1.9 blocks per game, second-year guard Doug Christie contributed 10.3 points and 1.4 steals per game, and James Worthy averaged 10.2 points per game off the bench.[28]
Following the season, Johnson resigned as head coach,[29][30] while Worthy retired after twelve seasons with the Lakers,[31][32][33] Christie was traded to the New York Knicks,[34][35][36] and Schayes signed as a free agent with the Phoenix Suns.[37]