The Los Angeles Lakers are arguably the NBA’s most storied franchise by virtue of their 17 world championships. They’ve been so successful over the decades that even when they haven’t won it all, they have had some impressive squads that were memorable, talented, star-studded and very competitive.
After the Lakers won the 1987 championship, head coach Pat Riley guaranteed they would win it again the following year and become the first NBA team to repeat as champs in 19 years. They did exactly that by defeating the Detroit Pistons in a close, hard-fought seven-game final series.
After that, the challenge was to end the decade of the 1980s the way they started it — with a world title.