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1995–96 Los Angeles Lakers season

NBA professional basketball team season

Prime Sports West (lost to Rockets 1–3)

The 1995–96 Los Angeles Lakers season was the 48th season for the Los Angeles Lakers in the National Basketball Association, and their 36th season in Los Angeles, California. It was also the highlight of retired All-Star guard, and Lakers legend Magic Johnson making a comeback at the age of 36; Johnson had retired from the NBA early into the 1991–92 season due to his HIV infection. During the off-season, the team signed free agents Corie Blount and Derek Strong.

The Lakers got off to a slow start by losing three of their first four games of the regular season, 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 at the Great Western Forum; Johnson scored 19 points along with 8 rebounds, 10 assists and 2 steals in 27 minutes off the bench. 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.

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 SuperSonics again; Ceballos went missing for a few days, but later on returned to the team, and was suspended without pay. 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. Johnson was also suspended for three games for bumping into a referee during a home game against the Phoenix Suns on April 14. The Lakers finished in second place in the Pacific Division with a 53–29 record, and earned the fourth seed in the Western Conference.

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 led them with 144 three-point field goals, and Johnson played a sixth man role off the bench, moving into the power forward position, averaging 14.6 points, 5.7 rebounds and 6.9 assists per game in 32 games, starting in just nine of them. 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. Also off the bench, Anthony Peeler contributed 9.7 points per game and 105 three-point field goals, while Sedale Threatt provided with 7.3 points and 3.3 assists per game, and George Lynch averaged 3.8 points and 2.8 rebounds per game.

Johnson finished in fifth place in Sixth Man of the Year voting, and also finished tied in twelfth place in Most Valuable Player voting, while Campbell finished in seventh place in Most Improved Player voting. Johnson also reached a milestone during the regular season, by passing his 10,000 career assist in a 102–89 road win over the Sacramento Kings, at the ARCO Arena II on March 7, 1996.

In the Western Conference First Round of the 1996 NBA playoffs, the Lakers faced off against the 5th–seeded, and 2-time defending NBA champion Houston Rockets, a team that featured All-Star center Hakeem Olajuwon, All-Star guard Clyde Drexler, and Robert Horry. The Lakers lost Game 1 to the Rockets at home, 87–83 at the Great Western Forum, but managed to win Game 2 at home, 104–94 to even the series. However, the Lakers then lost the next two games to the Rockets on the road, which included a Game 4 loss at The Summit, 102–94, thus losing the series in four games.

The Lakers finished 21st in the NBA in home-game attendance, with an attendance of 649,634 at the Great Western Forum during the regular season. Following the season, Johnson decided to retire for the second time and for good, after the Lakers' loss to the Rockets in the opening round of the NBA playoffs. Meanwhile, Divac was traded to the Charlotte Hornets after seven seasons with the Lakers, Peeler and Lynch were both traded to the Vancouver Grizzlies, Strong signed as a free agent with the Orlando Magic, and Threatt was released to free agency.

NBA draft

Main article: 1995 NBA draft

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

Roster

Del Harris
Bill Bertka
Michael Cooper
Larry Drew
Kurt Rambis

Regular season

Magic's Comeback

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, 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."{{cite web | first=Larry | last=Schwartz | title=Magic made Showtime a show | url = https://www.espn.com/sportscentury/features/00016111.html |work=ESPN.com | access-date=2007-09-13| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20070912095951/http://espn.go.com/sportscentury/features/00016111.html| archive-date= 12 September 2007 | url-status= live}}

Season standings

Game log

Regular season

Playoffs

1–3

Player statistics

Regular season

|- | 57 || 2 || 12.5 || .473 || .000 || .568 || 3.0 || .7 || .4 || .6 || 3.2 |- | 82 || 82 || 32.9 || .503 || .000 || .713 || 7.6 || 2.2 || 1.1 || 2.6 || 13.9 |- | 78 || 71 || 33.7 || .530 || .277 || .804 || 6.9 || 1.5 || 1.2 || .3 || 21.2 |- | 79 || 79 || 31.3 || .513 || .167 || .641 || 8.6 || 3.3 || 1.0 || 1.7 || 12.9 |- | 32 || 9 || 29.9 || .466 || .379 || .856 || 5.7 || 6.9 || .8 || .4 || 14.6 |- | 70 || 66 || 31.2 || .492 || .366 || .739 || 3.3 || 3.5 || 1.8 || .6 || 12.8 |- | 6 || 0 || 3.3 || .273 || .000 || .333 || .3 || .3 || .3 || .0 || 1.2 |- | 76 || 6 || 13.3 || .430 || .308 || .663 || 2.8 || .7 || .6 || .1 || 3.8 |- | 27 || 0 || 4.6 || .429 || .000 || .600 || .9 || .1 || .1 || .0 || 1.3 |- | 73 || 12 || 22.0 || .452 || .413 || .709 || 1.9 || 1.6 || .8 || .1 || 9.7 |- | 33 || 1 || 9.6 || .495 || .286 || .786 || 1.4 || .8 || .5 || .1 || 3.7 |- | 63 || 0 || 11.8 || .426 || .111 || .812 || 2.8 || .5 || .3 || .2 || 3.4 |- | 82 || 8 || 20.6 || .458 || .355 || .761 || 1.2 || 3.3 || .8 || .1 || 7.3 |- | 74 || 74 || 34.0 || .417 || .357 || .799 || 2.4 || 6.9 || .9 || .1 || 14.9 |}

Playoffs

|- | 4 || 4 || 32.3 || .513 || .000 || .500 || 8.0 || 2.0 || .3 || 2.3 || 12.0 |- | 4 || 4 || 35.5 || .484 || .313 || .917 || 8.3 || 1.3 || 1.0 || .3 || 19.0 |- | 4 || 4 || 28.8 || .429 || .200 || .625 || 7.5 || 2.0 || .0 || 1.3 || 9.0 |- | 4 || 0 || 33.8 || .385 || .333 || .848 || 8.5 || 6.5 || .0 || .0 || 15.3 |- | 4 || 4 || 38.8 || .551 || .526 || .625 || 5.3 || 1.5 || 2.0 || .3 || 17.3 |- | 2 || 0 || 7.5 || .500 || .000 || || 1.5 || .5 || .0 || .0 || 2.0 |- | 3 || 0 || 24.0 || .333 || .429 || 1.000 || 2.7 || 1.0 || 2.0 || .0 || 9.3 |- | 1 || 0 || 3.0 || .000 || || || 3.0 || .0 || .0 || .0 || .0 |- | 4 || 0 || 14.3 || .222 || .182 || || .8 || 1.0 || .5 || .0 || 2.5 |- | 4 || 4 || 34.3 || .296 || .313 || .769 || 4.0 || 6.8 || .5 || .0 || 11.8 |}

† Denotes player spent time with another team in the season. Stats reflect time with the Lakers only. Player statistics citation:

Salaries

Player	Salary
Vlade Divac	$3,333,000
Sedale Threatt	$2,400,000
Cedric Ceballos	$2,245,000
Elden Campbell	$2,200,000
Nick Van Exel	$1,900,000
George Lynch	$1,760,000
Eddie Jones	$1,600,000
Anthony Peeler	$1,330,000
Corie Blount	$1,040,000
Derek Strong	$1,000,000
Magic Johnson	$1,000,000
Anthony Miller	$550,000
Fred Roberts	$225,000
Frankie King	$200,000

Player Salaries Citation:

References

Lakers on Basketball Reference

References

[https://www.basketball-reference.com/teams/LAL/1996.html 1995-96 Los Angeles Lakers]
Friend, Tom. (January 30, 1996). "BASKETBALL; Johnson Finally Says the Magic Words: "It's On"". The New York Times.
Howard-Cooper, Scott. (January 30, 1996). "MAGIC REAPPEARS: It's "Go Time": Magic Moment Finally Happens". Los Angeles Times.
Claiborne, William. (January 30, 1996). "Magic Johnson Returns to NBA". The Washington Post.
Howard-Cooper, Scott. (July 1, 1995). "Lakers Acquire Corie Blount from Bulls". Los Angeles Times.
Howard-Cooper, Scott. (November 3, 1995). "THE NBA: 1995-96: Greater Expectations: Lakers May Have Accomplished a Lot, But Now They're Really Thinking Big". Los Angeles Times.
Friend, Tom. (January 31, 1996). "PRO BASKETBALL; The Stars Are Out: It's Showtime Again for Lakers". The New York Times.
Howard-Cooper, Scott. (January 31, 1996). "Simply Magical: Johnson Makes Emotional --and Hugely Successful--Return in Laker Victory". Los Angeles Times.
Aldridge, David. (January 31, 1996). "For Lakers, It's Magic In the Air". The Washington Post.
"Golden State Warriors at Los Angeles Lakers Box Score, January 30, 1996". Basketball-Reference.
"NBA Games Played on February 8, 1996". Basketball-Reference.
(March 22, 1996). "Ceballos Is Missing, Suspended". Los Angeles Times.
Howard-Cooper, Scott. (March 25, 1996). "Ceballos Returns, Blames Absence on Family Crisis". Los Angeles Times.
Taylor, Phil. (April 1, 1996). "ON SPRING BREAK: Cedric Ceballos's Unauthorized Vacation Threatened to Destroy the Chemistry That Had Made the Lakers a Contender Since Magic Johnson's Return".
Howard-Cooper, Scott. (April 10, 1996). "Van Exel Delivers Blow to Referee in Loss by Lakers". Los Angeles Times.
Litsky, Frank. (April 11, 1996). "PRO BASKETBALL; Van Exel Receives 7-Game Suspension". The New York Times.
(April 11, 1996). "Hitting Referee Costs Van Exel $187,000". Los Angeles Times.
Howard-Cooper, Scott. (April 15, 1996). "Magic Gets Into the Act, Bumps Referee, Faces Ban". Los Angeles Times.
Litsky, Frank. (April 16, 1996). "PRO BASKETBALL; Lakers' Johnson Is Banned, Fined and Apologetic". The New York Times.
Howard-Cooper, Scott. (April 16, 1996). "Magic's Bump Rap: Three Games". Los Angeles Times.
"1995–96 Los Angeles Lakers Schedule and Results". Basketball-Reference.
MacMullan, Jackie. (February 5, 1996). "Lakers Envision Johnson in Sixth-Man Role; Pricing Some Coveted Free Agents; Hawks Soar With Mookie".
Cotton, Anthony. (May 2, 1996). "As Lakers Try to Go Forward, Magic Misses the Point". The Washington Post.
"1995–96 Los Angeles Lakers Roster and Stats". Basketball-Reference.
"1995–96 NBA Awards Voting". Basketball-Reference.
Howard-Cooper, Scott. (March 8, 1996). "Magic Reaches Big Milestone on Little Pass". Los Angeles Times.
(March 8, 1996). "Jordan Rips Pistons for a Cool 53". Deseret News.
(March 7, 2023). "This Day in Lakers History: Magic Johnson Reaches 10,000 Career Assists". Lakers Nation.
Friend, Tom. (May 3, 1996). "NBA PLAYOFFS; Rockets Move On. Magic Might, Too". The New York Times.
Howard-Cooper, Scott. (May 3, 1996). "Show's Over". Los Angeles Times.
"1996 NBA Western Conference First Round: Rockets vs. Lakers". Basketball-Reference.
"1995–96 NBA Season Summary". Basketball-Reference.
Brown, Clifton. (May 15, 1996). "PRO BASKETBALL; Leaving on His Terms, Johnson Retires Again". The New York Times.
Howard-Cooper, Scott. (May 15, 1996). "Pooof!: Johnson Retires on His Terms This Time". Los Angeles Times.
Adande, J.A.. (May 15, 1996). "Magic Retires from Lakers". The Washington Post.
(July 2, 1996). "SPORTS PEOPLE: BASKETBALL; Divac Agrees to a Trade with Charlotte". The New York Times.
Howard-Cooper, Scott. (July 12, 1996). "Divac-for-Bryant Deal Done, Freeing Money for O'Neal". Los Angeles Times.
Heisler, Mark. (July 21, 1996). "A New Day for Vlade". Los Angeles Times.
(July 17, 1996). "Laker Trade May Signal Big Deal". Los Angeles Times.
(July 17, 1996). "L.A. Trades for $$$, Not for New Talent". Deseret News.
(July 18, 1996). "Lakers Sweeten Deal, Offer Shaq $120 Million". The Spokesman-Review.
Povtak, Tim. (August 27, 1996). "Magic Add Strong, Delete Wolf". Orlando Sentinel.
(August 27, 1996). "Furthermore". The Washington Post.
NY Times, [https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?sec=health&res=9E0CE4DA1330F933A0575AC0A964958260 Johnson, Unbowed by H.I.V., Will Return to Pro Basketball ], accessed June 1, 2007.
"1995–96 Los Angeles Lakers Salaries". Basketball-Reference.

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