Throughout the history of the NBA, few teams have been able to separate themselves from the rest of the pack to create such a global brand. Amongst those giants are the Los Angeles Lakers, along with the Boston Celtics and Chicago Bulls.
For the Lakers, their rich history dates back to an era in Minneapolis. Named after the thousands of lakes in the area, the franchise hailed from the state of Minnesota, creating an NBA powerhouse through the early 1950s.
Leading the charge for the Lakers was future Hall-of-Famer George Mikan, one of the pioneers of the center position.