How the Lakers Got Kobe And Shaq In One Summer

1996 was a big offseason for the Lakers. They’d made the playoffs the previous two seasons and had an exciting core of young players, but were looking to take the next step toward championship contention.

To achieve that, Lakers management set their sights on an unrestricted free agent who was amongst the league’s most dominant players, and about to enter his prime.

But the team didn’t have enough salary cap space & 24-year old Shaq was set to command a historic figure.

The Lakers would have to trade some key contributors if they wanted a chance at O’Neal, with no guarantee he would sign.

Amidst this backdrop, the team was holding draft workouts.

Kevin Garnett had become the first preps-to-pros draft pick in two decades the year before, and the 1996 draft had two such players: Jermaine O’Neal and Kobe Bryant.

Bryant was the first guard to attempt the jump from high school to the NBA, and was seen as a risky pick in one of the most talented drafts in league history.

So the Lakers brought Kobe in for a workout, and they had a formidable opponent lined up to test the 17-year old Bryant’s mettle – former Defensive Player of the Year, Michael Cooper.

What happened next convinced Lakers brass that Kobe was a future star.

But for as impressive as Kobe’s workout was, the Lakers didn’t have much of a chance to draft him. They had the 24th pick, and it was almost certain that he would be taken long before then.

That’s when the team turned their salary cap problem into a golden opportunity.

Vlade Divac was the team’s starting center, 1989 1st Round pick, and longest tenured Laker. But he played the same position as Shaq, and was the likeliest player to be traded if they pursued O’Neal.

So the Lakers tried to accomplish two goals at once. Trading Vlade for the highest draft pick possible gave them a chance to draft Kobe, while also freeing up enough cap space to sign Shaq.

They found a trading partner in the Charlotte Hornets, who selected Kobe with the 13th pick on behalf of the Lakers.

The Lakers found a future champion with the 24th pick as well.

Three weeks later, the Lakers signed Shaquille O’Neal to a 7-year contract.

Credit: Lakers