In the 1991-92 season, after starting 1-2, the Laker's Magic Johnson retired. The Lakers, led by Vlade Divac, responded with a nine-game winning streak. However, in December, Divac underwent surgery and was lost for two months. This resulted in a 6-8 showing in December, the team's first losing month since March of 1979. The team managed to qualify for the playoffs for a record 16th straight time. However, due to the loss of James Worthy and Sam Perkins to injury, Los Angeles was eliminated in the first round by Portland.
Prior to the 1992-93 season, coach Mike Dunleavy left to become head coach and vice-president of basketball operations for the Milwaukee Bucks. Randy Pfund replace him as coach. The Lakers struggled to mesh the young talent of Divac, Elden Campbell, and Anthony Peeler. It soon became obvious, as they let A.C. Green and Byron Scott go in free agency, that they were looking to rebuild. They barely made it to the playoffs, where they came close, but not close enough, to defeating the Phoenix Suns.
The following year, the team posted a 33-49 mark, the second worst since 1960. Their single bright spot was Nick Van Exel. A second-round pick, Van Exel put up 13.6 ppg.
For the 1994-95 season, their coach would be Del Harris, replacing Randy Pfund. The Lakers, aided by rookie Eddie Jones, posted a 15-game improvment. They defeated the Seattle SuperSonics in the playoffs, but then lost to the San Antonio Spurs in six games. However, the season did not go without reward. Del Harris was named Coach of the Year, Jerry West was named Executive of the Year, Cedric Cebellos was an All-Star, and Eddie Jones won a spot on the All-Rookie First Team. Coming of their best season since 1990-91, there was reason for optimism. That optimism increased with the return of Magic Johnson on January 30. His return, however, disrupted the fragile chemistry of the young team. Despite the turmoil, the Lakers finished second in the Pacific Division.
In the playoffs, though, they were swept by Hakeem Olajuwon and the Houston Rockets. The offseason brought a series of changes that would eventually lead them to a championship. In the draft, they snatched up 18 year-old Kobe Bryant. They also acquired Shaquille O'Neal, a 7'1" center, from the Orlando Magic. Inspite of O'Neal being injured the first 31 games, the Lakers improved to 56-26. In the 51 games that Shaq played, they went 38-13.
With a lineup boasting Shaq, Jones, Bryant, Campbell, and Robert Horry, they defeated the Portland Trailblazers in the first round of the playoffs before losing to Karl Malone, John Stockton, and the Utah Jazz in the Western Conference Semi-Finals.
The following season, Shaq would again be injured, this time for 20 games. However, the Lakers proved they were not one-dimensional as they posted a 24-7 start en route to a 61 game season. Shaq, Kobe, Jones, and Van Exel each made the All-Star squad, making the Lakers the first team in 15 seasons to send four players to an All-Star game.
In 1998-99, they advanced to the Western Conference Semi-Finals before being swept by the eventual champion Spurs. During the offseason, the Lakers obtained Phil Jackson as coach, as well as outside shooter Glen Rice. With Shaq averaging 30 points and 14 rebounds a game, and Kobe adding 23 points a game, the Lakers coasted through the regular season. Shaq became only the third player (the other two being Willis Reed, and Michael Jordan) to be named the All-Star MVP, regular season MVP, and Finals MVP in the same season. Kobe was an All-Defensive Player, and an All-Star. Together, under the guidance of Jackson, they defeated the Indiana Pacers to claim the NBA Championship. With Bryant, 21, and Shaq, 28, both signed to multi-year contracts, the future looks bright in Los Angeles, the city of the stars.
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