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.
During the Lakers' 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.
Stan Love grew up in the Baldwin Hills community of Los Angeles and went on to play three seasons at the University of Oregon, where he averaged 21.1 points and 10.5 rebounds a game. He spent the first two seasons of his NBA career with the Baltimore Bullets, who took him with the No. 9 pick in the 1971 draft, before he was traded to the Lakers in 1973.
The 6-foot-9 power forward was with the Lakers for one and a half seasons and averaged 6.2 points and 3.3 rebounds in 13.9 minutes a game during his time with them. He was waived midway through the 1974-75 season and finished out that campaign with the San Antonio Spurs, who were then in the American Basketball Association (ABA), before retiring. Love ended up with career stats of 6.6 points and 3.9 rebounds in 14.7 minutes a game across both the NBA and ABA.
He wasn't exactly the most successful or well-known member of his family. His brother Mike teamed up with cousins Brian Wilson, Carl Wilson and Dennis Wilson to form the legendary group the Beach Boys, and his son Kevin became a legitimate star in the NBA who has averaged 15.8 points and 9.8 rebounds a game through 18 seasons and been named to five NBA All-Star teams.
This article originally appeared on LeBron Wire: Lakers jersey history No. 34 — Stan Love
