Forgotten Lakers

Former Los Angeles Laker Swen Nater came on the podcast to discuss his career, one that didn't start until he first started playing in junior college. He went on to play at UCLA, backing up Bill Walton for some of the greatest college teams of all time. A first round draft pick of the Bucks, Swen spent time in the ABA and NBA with several teams, including the 1983-1984 season with the Lakers.

Swen is a motivational speaker and his info can be found at www.swennater.me

Former Laker Tony Smith came on to discuss his time in LA, which coincided with the Lakers' 1991 NBA Finals run and Magic Johnson's premature retirement, and more.

Tierre Brown, a member of the Los Angeles Lakers in the 2004-2005 season, came on to discuss his basketball career and his year as a Laker. Tierre's story about entering the league after being discovered in a pick-up game was really inspiring, as he went from being undrafted to being MVP of the D-League and then spending time with four different teams in the NBA.

John Celestand, a member of the 1999-2000 championship team, came on to discuss his season as a member of the Lakers, the only year he spent in the NBA. After playing in Europe for several years, John retired from basketball at the age of 28 to transition to "the real world," and get a jump start on a new career.

Another member of the 2001-2002 Lakers training camp roster, Peter Cornell, came on to discuss his basketball career. A former Loyola Marymount standout, Peter played on over 30 teams in the NBA, minor leagues, and overseas over 12 seasons during his incredibly unique career. We talked about his time at Loyola, his first professional basketball paycheck which paid him $189 while playing for the Magic City SnowBears in the IBA, his time in camp with the Lakers, his friendship with Shaq and much more.

Though he never played in a regular season game for the Los Angeles Lakers, former NBA player and current author Paul Shirley was a member of the Lakers' 2001 training camp roster. He went on to play with the Hawks, Bulls, Suns, as well as several teams overseas. In this episode, Paul discusses his college career at Iowa State, his training camp run with the Lakers, and some of the nuances of his unique basketball career. Check out his new book, "Stories I Tell on Dates," here: https://www.storiesitellondates.com

Former Laker Devean George (1999-2006) came on to discuss his career. Devean is still the only player ever to be drafted in the first round from an NCAA Division III school (Augsburg), and went to on to play a vital role for the Lakers during their championship run.

Joe Smith, the first overall pick in the 1995 NBA draft, came on to discuss his NBA career. He played for the Lakers in the 2010-2011 season, the final stop in a 16-year career that saw him play with 12 different teams: Warriors, Sixers, Timberwolves, Pistons, Bucks, Nuggets, Bulls, Cavs, Thunder, Hawks, Nets, and the Lakers.

In this short episode, former Laker Duane Cooper (1992-1993) came on to discuss his career at USC and his time with the Lakers and the Suns.

Former Laker Chucky Brown (1991-1992) came on to discuss various stops in his NBA career. He shared his memories of his first NBA game where Michael Jordan dropped 54 against his Cleveland team, joining the Lakers and being a teammate of his childhood idol James Worthy, winning the title in 1995 with Houston, and the infamous 2002 Western Conference finals series between the Lakers and his Sacramento Kings team.