The Lakers will honor late franchise icon Jerry West with jersey bands throughout the 2024-25 season.
The organization announced on Tuesday that the team will wear commemorative bands with West’s No. 44 on the left shoulder of all their jerseys this season.
West, who died in June at 86 years old, spent all 14 seasons (1960-74) of his professional playing career with the Lakers before becoming the franchise’s head coach and later an accomplished executive.
In addition to the jersey bands, the Lakers will honor West with a West No. 44 jersey fan giveaway for their regular-season opener when they host the Minnesota Timberwolves on Oct. 22 at Crypto.com Arena.
Nicknamed “Mr. Clutch” for his penchant for delivering in the most crucial moments, West led the Lakers to nine NBA Finals appearances, winning the championship in 1971-72. Considered one of the greatest shooting guards ever to play, he was a 14-time All-Star, a 12-time All-NBA selection, a five-time member of the All-Defensive team and was the 1969 NBA Finals MVP despite being on the losing team – still the only time the award has been given to a player on the losing team.
West was the architect of the Lakers’ “Showtime” era that won five NBA titles in the 1980s (1980, ’82, ’85, ’87, ’88) and laid the foundation for the Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal-led Lakers teams that won three consecutive titles in the early 2000s (2000-02).
SOUTH BAY COACH
The Lakers hired Zach Guthrie as the new head coach of the franchise’s G League affiliate, the South Bay Lakers, on Tuesday.
Most recently an assistant coach for the Washington Wizards (2021-24), Guthrie has also been an assistant coach with the Dallas Mavericks (2020-21) and Utah Jazz (2016-20).
He was the Orlando Magic’s manager of advanced scouting from 2012-15.
“I’m incredibly honored to step into this role as head coach of the South Bay Lakers,” Guthrie said in a statement. “Helping players unlock their full potential is critically important to me. I let players know it’s a partnership and it’s our collective mission to help them succeed in every way possible.
“I couldn’t be more excited to work alongside coach [JJ] Redick and his staff to build a developmental program dedicated to excellence at every level.”
