Through the 2024-25 season, the Los Angeles Lakers have had a total of 506 players suit up for them, going back to their days in Minneapolis. Some were forgettable, some were serviceable, some were good and a select few were flat-out legendary.
During the Lakers’ 80th season of existence (they were founded back in 1946 as the Detroit Gems in the National Basketball League), LeBron Wire is taking a look at each player who has worn their jersey, whether it has been a purple and gold one or the ones they donned back in the Midwest during their early years.
Cedric Ceballos starred at California State University, Fullerton for two years before he was a second-round draft pick by the Phoenix Suns in 1990. He started to emerge as a potent scorer within a few years, but he was mostly stuck on the bench behind Hall of Famer Charles Barkley.
In the summer of 1994, the Lakers traded their 1995 first-round pick to the Suns for Ceballos. He came to them right after they missed the playoffs for the first time since 1976, and he gave them some much-needed offensive talent. In his first season in Los Angeles, the 6-foot-7 forward averaged 21.7 points and eight rebounds a game, and he made the NBA All-Star Game while helping L.A. return to the playoffs.
But Ceballos tarnished his own reputation late in the 1995-96 season when he left the team unannounced and was found water skiing in Lake Havasu, Ariz. The Lakers traded him back to Phoenix midway through the next season for Robert Horry, who became a key part of their team and helped them win three straight NBA championships to start the new millennium.
Ceballos’ NBA career ended after the 2000-01 season, and he went on to have stints with the Harlem Globetrotters and in a number of minor pro basketball leagues. He ended up with lifetime NBA averages of 14.3 points and 5.3 rebounds in 24.2 minutes a game.
This article originally appeared on LeBron Wire: Lakers jersey history No. 23 — Cedric Ceballos
Reporting by Robert Marvi, LeBron Wire / LeBron Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
