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.
Darren Collison grew up in Rancho Cucamonga, Calif., and played four years of college basketball at the University of California, Los Angeles, where he was named First-team All-Pac-10 twice. In 2009, the New Orleans Hornets took him with the No. 21 pick in the NBA draft.
In his first 10 seasons, Collison made himself into a decent starting point guard in the league and led everyone in 3-point shooting accuracy during the 2017-18 season. He sat out the 2019-20 and 2020-21 campaigns for religious reasons, but he returned early in the 2021-22 season on a 10-day contract with the Lakers.
He appeared in three games with the Lakers and totaled four points, four rebounds, two assists and one steal in 37 minutes. That marked the end of Collison’s NBA career — he finished with lifetime averages of 12.5 points and five assists a game.
This article originally appeared on LeBron Wire: Lakers jersey history No. 21 — Darren Collison
Reporting by Robert Marvi, LeBron Wire / LeBron Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
