15 stars you might have forgot played for the Los Angeles Lakers

4. Spencer Haywood (1979-80)

Even though he’s in the Hall of Fame, Spencer Haywood is one of the most underrated and overlooked great players in NBA history.

The fact that it took decades for him to get into the Hall and for the Seattle SuperSonics to retire his jersey speaks to that. Haywood last played in 1983, but the Sonics didn’t honor him until 2007, and the Hall of Fame didn’t welcome him until 2015.

Haywood is arguably known more for what he did in the courtroom than what he did on the basketball court.

After leading Team USA to an Olympic gold medal in 1968, Haywood decided to leave the University of Detroit after his sophomore year and go pro. The NBA wouldn’t allow that back then, so Haywood went to the ABA, where he was league MVP as a rookie while averaging 30.0 points and 19.5 rebounds per game for the Denver Rockets.

Haywood tried again to get into the NBA the following season, signing with the Sonics while simultaneously challenging the league with an anti-trust lawsuit.

Haywood was able to play on some nights — and he was banned from the arena on other nights — while the legal battle went all the way to the Supreme Court of the United States. His case eventually opened the door for early entries into the NBA Draft, removing a prohibition that would’ve limited everybody from Magic Johnson to Shaquille O’Neal to Kobe Bryant to LeBron James.

With the lawsuit behind him, Haywood went on to become a four-time All-Star and four-time All-NBA pick in Seattle. He averaged 24.9 points, 12.1 rebounds and 1.5 blocks for the Sonics. Haywood played for the Knicks and Jazz before joining the Los Angeles Lakers in 1979-80, Magic Jonson’s rookie season.

Haywood was only 30 years old at the time, but injuries and drug abuse had taken a toll on his body and he wasn’t the same player he used to be.

Haywood averaged 9.7 points and 4.6 rebounds per game for the Lakers. He was barely getting any playing time when he was suspended during the 1980 NBA Finals due to his addiction. In later years, Haywood revealed that he was so angry and out of his mind that he plotted to kill coach Paul Westhead for that decision.

The Lakers went on to win the championship, but Haywood didn’t receive his ring until years later.

He spent the next season playing in Italy, then returned to the NBA to finish his career with the Washington Bullets.

More importantly, Haywood was able to get clean and sober, and today he’s a successful business owner.