1995–96 Los Angeles Lakers season

The 1995–96 NBA season was the Lakers' 48th season in the National Basketball Association, and 36th in the city of Los Angeles.^[1] It was also the highlight of retired All-Star guard and Lakers legend Magic Johnson making a comeback.^{[2][3][4][5][6]} During the off-season, the team signed free agents Corie Blount and Derek Strong.^[7][8] The Lakers got off to a slow start losing three of their first four games, but soon recovered holding a 24–18 record before Johnson's arrival on January 30, 1996, in a 128–118 home victory over the Golden State Warriors; Magic had 19 points, 8 rebounds, 10 assists and 2 steals in 27 minutes off the bench.^{[9][6][10][11][12]} The Lakers won ten of their twelve games in February, which included an 8-game winning streak, and held a 28–19 record at the All-Star break.^[13]

However, in March, after a game against the Seattle SuperSonics, scoring leader Cedric Ceballos missed the team's charter flight to Seattle without explanation, as the Lakers were scheduled to play the Sonics again; Ceballos went missing for a few days, but later on returned to the team, and was suspended without pay.^{[14][15][16][17]} Their troubles continued as Nick Van Exel shoved a referee during a road game against the Denver Nuggets on April 9, and was suspended for the final seven games of the regular season.^{[18][19][20][21]} Magic was also suspended for three games for bumping into a referee during a home game against the Phoenix Suns on April 14.^{[22][23][24][25]} The Lakers finished second in the Pacific Division with a 53–29 record.^[26]

Ceballos averaged 21.2 points and 6.9 rebounds per game, while Van Exel provided the team with 14.9 points and 6.9 assists per game, and Johnson played a sixth man role moving into the power forward position,^[27][28] averaging 14.6 points, 5.7 rebounds and 6.9 assists per game off the bench in 32 games, starting in just nine of them. He also reached a milestone by passing his 10,000 career assist in a 102–89 road win over the Sacramento Kings on March 7, 1996,^{[29][30][31][32]} and finished in fifth place in Sixth Man of the Year voting.^[33][34] In addition, Elden Campbell averaged 13.9 points, 7.6 rebounds and 2.6 blocks per game, while Vlade Divac provided with 12.9 points, 8.6 rebounds and 1.7 blocks per game, and second-year guard Eddie Jones contributed 12.8 points and 1.8 steals per game. Off the bench, Anthony Peeler contributed 9.7 points per game, and Sedale Threatt provided with 7.3 points and 3.3 assists per game.^[35]

However, in the Western Conference First Round of the playoffs, the Lakers lost to the 5th-seeded, and 2-time defending champion Houston Rockets in four games;^{[36][37][38][39]} after the defeat, Magic decided to retire for the second time and for good.^{[40][41][42][43][44]}

Also following the season, Divac was traded to the Charlotte Hornets in exchange for 1996 NBA draftee, and high school basketball star Kobe Bryant,^{[45][46][47][48][49]} while Peeler and George Lynch were both dealt to the Vancouver Grizzlies,^[50][51][52] Strong signed as a free agent with the Orlando Magic,^[53][54] and Threatt was released to free agency.

Round	Pick	Player	Position	Nationality	College
2	37	Frankie King	Guard	United States	Western Carolina

1995–96 Los Angeles Lakers roster

Players

Coaches

Pos. No. Name Height Weight DOB From F 43 Blount, Corie 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 240 lb (109 kg) 1969–01–04 Cincinnati F 41 Campbell, Elden 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 215 lb (98 kg) 1968–07–23 Clemson F 23 Ceballos, Cedric 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 1969–08–02 Cal State Fullerton C 12 Divac, Vlade 7 ft 1 in (2.16 m) 243 lb (110 kg) 1968–02–03 Yugoslavia F 32 Johnson, Magic 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 215 lb (98 kg) 1959–08–14 Michigan State G 25 Jones, Eddie 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 1971–10–20 Temple G 4 King, Frankie  6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 1972–06–06 Western Carolina F 34 Lynch, George 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 218 lb (99 kg) 1970–09–03 North Carolina F 2 Miller, Anthony  6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 225 lb (102 kg) 1971–10–22 Michigan State G 1 Peeler, Anthony 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 208 lb (94 kg) 1969–11–25 Missouri C 24 Roberts, Fred 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 218 lb (99 kg) 1960–08–14 BYU F 7 Strong, Derek 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 220 lb (100 kg) 1968–02–09 Xavier G 3 Threatt, Sedale 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 1961–09–10 West Virginia Tech G 9 Van Exel, Nick 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 170 lb (77 kg) 1971–11–27 Cincinnati

Head coach Del Harris Assistant coach(es) Bill Bertka Michael Cooper Larry Drew Kurt Rambis Legend (DP) Unsigned draft pick (FA) Free agent (S) Suspended Injured Roster

In the 1995–96 NBA season, Johnson made a short-lived second comeback as a player from January 1996 to May 1996. In this time, he had bulked up from his self-reported weight of 235 lb in 1992,^[55] to 255 lb in order to play power forward, a much more physical position than his usual point guard role. At age 36, Johnson played the last 32 games of the season, averaging 14.6 points, 6.9 assists, and 5.7 rebounds per game. The Lakers lost to the Houston Rockets in the first round of the playoffs, and Johnson retired for good. Johnson explained his comeback with the words: "I'm going out on my terms, something I couldn't say when I aborted a comeback in 1992."^[56]

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Player Salaries Citation:^[57]

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• Lakers on Database Basketball
• Lakers on Basketball Reference