The underappreciated showtime Laker player with an ugly shot

The Los Angeles Lakers have had a bunch of amazing players. Some of them have been part of the Greatest Of All Time debate. However, there have been some players that have been forgotten by the fans. Jamaal Wilkes was a key player for the Lakers at the start of the 80s.

Wilkes entered the league in 1974 when he was drafted by the Golden State Warriors. In the 1977-78 season, the Lakers signed Jamaal Wilkes to a free agent deal. In his first season in LA, he averaged 12.9 points in 51 games. However, it was in his second year with the Lakers that he took a step forward averaging 20.0 points and 6.4 rebounds.

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With a team led by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Magic Johnson, it's understandable that Jamaal Wilkes would be overshadowed. Still, he shined in the 1980 NBA Finals as he had to step up after Kareem suffered an ankle injury. Wilkes managed 37 points and 10 rebounds in LA’s series-clinching, 123-107 win over the Sixers.

Former Lakers player, Norm Nixon, recently talked about Wilkes during an appearance on Abdul-Jabbar’s Skyhook: The Podcast. “That little curl coming across the middle. That shot was so ugly that people would say he can’t make that shot, but he always surprised,” commented Nixon

Jamaal Wilkes career

Wilkes scored 14,644 points in his Hall of Fame career. He won four championships, one with the Warriors and the rest with the Lakers. He was selected to three all-star games and he won rookie of the year.