10 best point guards in Los Angeles Lakers history
By Amaar Burton
3. Norm Nixon (1977-83)
Magic Johnson wasn’t always the Los Angeles Lakers’ most prolific playmaker during the “Showtime” era.
For the first two seasons of Magic’s career, the Lakers’ leader in assists was Norm Nixon, the star point guard who finished in the NBA’s top-five in assists five times in his six years with the Lakers.
Not only was Nixon the top assist man on a team that featured Magic Johnson, but in the 1982 playoffs he led the Lakers in scoring (20.4 points per game) while sharing the floor with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. To outscore the game’s all-time leading scorer and hand out more assists than the game’s greatest passer while they’re both on your team is quite a claim to fame.
Norm Nixon led the @Lakers with 20.4 ppg during the '82 playoff campaign #FinalsTriviahttps://t.co/arksSmqaqr
— NBA History (@NBAHistory) May 30, 2015
Nixon was the Lakers’ first-round draft pick in 1977 and took over right away as the lead guard. He was an All-Rookie Team choice in 1977-78, helped L.A. win championships in 1980 and 1982, and was an All-Star in ’82.
Nixon averaged 16.4 points, 7.9 assists and 1.8 steals per game as a Laker. He was traded to the Los Angeles Clippers in 1983, reportedly because Lakers GM Jerry West wanted to give Magic more ball-handling responsibility.
Nixon went on to make another All-Star Game with the Clippers and set a career-high with 11.1 assists per game in the 1983-84 season. But then knee and Achilles injuries cost him two full seasons before he retired in 1989.