Gary Payton left the Bucks after playing only a total of 34 games and signed with the Los Angeles Lakers, along with Karl Malone, joining Shaquille O'neal and Kobe Bryant to form one of the best starting lineups in the history of the NBA. The Hall-of-Fame star-studed lineup lead the Lakers to a Pacific Division Title and the second seed in the NBA Playoffs. After defeating the Houston Rockets in 5 games, the Lakers faced a much tougher challenge in the defending champion San Antonio Spurs. The Spurs took the first two games of the series, but the Lakers went on to win the next four games and to the Western Conference Finals where they defeated the Minnesota Timberwolves to advance all the way to the NBA Finals where they eventually lost to the Detroit Pistons in 5 games. After losing in the Finals Karl Malone retired due to his injury, Shaq was traded to the Miami Heat and Payton was traded to the Boston Celtics where he spent one season.
Gary Payton Los Angeles Lakers Career Achievements
• Started all 82 games for the Lakers
• Scored in double figures on 70 occasions
• Scored at least 20 points in 16 games
• Scored 30-points in 1 game
• Grabbed double-figure rebounds twice
• Dished out double-figure assist in 7 games
• Recorded six double-doubles
• Recorded a triple-double with 23 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists vs. Hawks on Mar. 2
• Scored his 19,000th career point on Dec. 12 vs. San Antonio
• Became just the sixth player in NBA history to record 8,000 career assists on Mar. 28 vs. Houston
• Season high 30 points vs. Cleveland, Feb. 4
• Season high 15 assists vs. L.A. Clippers, Jan. 17
• Season high 13 rebounds vs. Houston, Apr. 1
• Season high 4 steals (four times), two blocks (four times)
• Season high 48 minutes vs. San Antonio, Nov. 6
