Spencer Haywood
Forward, #31
- Born April 22, 1949
- Attended Detroit
- Coached by Jack McKinney, Paul Westhead
Spencer Haywood should have been a perfect fit for the Lakers at the dawn of the "Showtime" era. Once a hot-shot young player who sued the NBA (and won) over its age eligibility rules, the veteran power forward was a basketball star who enjoyed the celebrity lifestyle that came with it.
His stint with the 1979-80 NBA championship team also could have been the highlight of a basketball career that already included an Olympic gold medal, an MVP award from his only season in the ABA and four NBA All-Star appearances.
But it didn't turn out that way. Things started off well with the Lakers, but Haywood's contributions to the team decreased as a cocaine problem took control of his life.
"I went from 25 points and 10 rebounds at the start of the season to 17 points and five rebounds in the middle to three points and no rebounds at the end," Haywood told The Times' Jim Murray in 1990.
By the time the Lakers hoisted the championship trophy, Haywood was not part of the celebration. He had been kicked off the team after passing out on the gym floor during stretching exercises before Game 3 of the NBA Finals against the Philadelphia 76ers (Haywood has said that he initially hired a hitman to kill Coach Paul Westhead after the incident but his mother talked him out of it).
Haywood told The Times in 1987 that he cleaned up after leaving L.A. and, after spending another season and a half in the NBA, went into real estate and the auto industry. The NBA's 55th all-time leading rebounder (8,675) also formed a youth foundation with an anti-drug message.
Feb. 12, 2011