East meets West- NBA Celebrity All Star Game

The Los Angeles Lakers and Orlando Magic finals is said to be one to make NBA history and be an NBA Celebrity all star game. Just how did these two teams start and how did they make their way up to the top?

The Minneapolis Lakers’ first season was 1947-48, when the team entered the National Basketball League with George Mikan as their star. They won their First NBA Finals 1949-51 against Syracuse Nationals-currently known as the Philadelphia 76ers. In 1960-62 during the off season, the Lakers became the NBA’s first West Coast team and once again made it to the finals in the 1964-65 season against the Boston Celtics but were beaten in the series, 4-1. In 1983-84, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar became the NBA’s all-time leading scorer when he scored point No. 31,420 against Utah and make it to the finals but again history repeated itself and they got beaten by the Boston Celtics. One of the most memorable years in Lakers history is when they finally beat the Celtics in 1985-86 seasons! They kept the title of NBA champion for two consecutive seasons and once again climbed to the finals in 1990-91 but didn’t come out the champion. The Draft rights traded by the Hornets to the L.A. Lakers for Vlade Divac on July 11, 1996 made Kobe Bryant their official player. He was named the youngest player to score 10,000 points in 2004 and has maintained his reputation ever since. Over the years from 1946-47 to 2007-08, the Lakers have made it to the finals but have been defeated 14 times and have come out as champions 9 times! This puts them in second rank with the Boston Celtics leading with 17 championship wins and 3 finalist lists. No wonder it’s no surprise that they’d make it to the finals this time and the only question was who they would be up against!

Orlando Magic on the other hand doesn’t have a long history of wins and has only reached the finals once in 1994-95. 1989-90 marked the Magic’s Inaugural Season when they came to be known as one of the league’s most prolific offensive teams. Though the 1991-92 year was very full of injuries and very disappointing, they won the NBA Draft lottery enabling them to select LSU star center Shaquille O’Neal. The 1994-95 proved to be an NBA celebrity all star game with Horace Grant and Shaquille O’Neal leading them to the finals, unfortunately they weren’t’ able to recover from their disappointing Game 1 loss and the Houston Rockets scooped the cup. Finishing with the worst record in the NBA in 2003-04 enabled the Magic to the top pick in the draft which they used on High School Player of the Year Dwight Howard who is currently their power forward and has been named the youngest player to score 10,000 points.

Isn’t it inspiring to discover how even the most talented and famous stars around did have quite humble beginnings and gradually made their way to the top? Undoubtedly, these two teams would be a fascinating match-up and would make a very historic NBA celebrity all star game worth watching. Whatever the outcome though let’s remember -“The difference between winning and losing is always a mental one.”

Tags: basketball, NBA, NBA celebrity all star game, Sports News

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