Today marks the 35th anniversary of the fifth and final NBA championship captured by the Showtime Lakers. On June 21st, 1988, they defeated the Pistons in Game 7 of the NBA Finals at the Fabulous Forum in Inglewood to win the franchise’s 11th title and fifth of the Showtime era.
The Showtime years were indisputably the finest, most successful and most exciting era of Lakers basketball. After Elgin, Jerry, Wilt and Gail had all departed, and before Kobe, Shaq and Pau or LeBron and AD arrived, a top-notch roster was led by two of the greatest players in NBA history, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Earvin “Magic” Johnson.