Forgotten Lakers

Former Los Angeles Laker Jelani McCoy came on the podcast to talk about his year as a Laker, the 2001-2002 season that ended with the LA's third-straight title. A Southern California native, Jelani grew up a diehard Laker fan, played at UCLA and passed up more money for the opportunity to play for the purple and gold.

Author Jeff Pearlman came on to discuss his new book, "Three Ring Circus: Kobe, Shaq, Phil, and the Crazy Years of the Lakers Dynasty"

Former Los Angeles Laker Lindsey Hunter came on the podcast to talk about his career. After winning a championship with the Lakers in 2002, he found himself back with the Detroit Pistons in 2004 when they upset the heavily-favored Lakers in the 2004 NBA Finals. It was interesting to hear his perspectives from both seasons. Thanks for listening!

Former Los Angeles Lakers play-by-play broadcaster Spero Dedes returns to Forgotten Lakers to talk about Kobe Bryant's passing and his legacy in Los Angeles. Brandon Rosenthal, host of After Hours Sports, also joined us.

Former Los Angeles Laker Joe Kleine came on "Forgotten Lakers" to discuss some of the stops during his 15-year career. A former Razorback and Olympic gold-medalist, Joe was traded from the Phoenix Suns to the Lakers in 1997 where he appeared in eight games before being shipped off to New Jersey. From there, Joe went on to win a championship with the Bulls in 1998 before retiring two seasons later after the 1999-2000 season.

Andrew Van Buuren, author of "Between Dynasties: The Los Angeles Lakers in the years between Magic and Kobe" came on to discuss his Laker fandom, why he chose that particular window in Laker history to chronicle, and how he perceives that era differently now than he did 25 years ago. We also played a fun Laker trivia game at the end.

Former Los Angeles Laker Mark Madsen came on the podcast to discuss his nine year NBA career, most notably his first three seasons as a Laker. A Stanford grad, Mark was the final pick of the first round in the 2000 NBA draft, and helped the Lakers win two titles in 2001 and 2002. After serving as an assistant coach for the Lakers for several years, Mark is now the head coach at Utah Valley University.

Jim Cotta, the Lakers Strength and Conditioning coach from 1997-1998 through 2003-2004, came on the podcast to talk about his seven year stretch working behind the scenes with some of the most memorable Laker teams in history. He talked about the 1998 Lakers which featured four all-stars, Dennis Rodman's short lived Laker tenure in 1999, Shaq's dominance in 2000, and much more.

Former Los Angeles Laker Travis Knight came on the podcast to discuss his career, one that included two separate stints in the purple and gold. Originally a rookie in the 1996 class that also featured Kobe Bryant and Derek Fisher, Travis spent his rookie year in LA only to sign with Boston as a free agent in 1997. One year in to his deal with the Celtics, they traded him back to Los Angeles--a move that he very much welcomed. His time in LA ended in 2000 and with a championship ring to show for it.