Gail Goodrich - NBA Career

NBA Career

Although many believed Goodrich was too small for the college game and too frail for the pros, Goodrich, through perseverance and discipline, proved his doubters wrong. Goodrich was nicknamed "Stumpy", a moniker bestowed upon him by teammate Elgin Baylor, because of Goodrich's height.

In 1968, the Lakers lost Goodrich to the Phoenix Suns in the expansion draft, and he quickly became the star of the new franchise and a favorite among Suns fans. A full-time starter for the first time in his NBA career in 1968-69, Goodrich scored 23.8 points per game—sixth in the league and tops on his team. He surprised critics who had labeled him a gunner by ranking seventh in assists with 6.4 per game and was also selected to play in the 1969 NBA All-Star Game. In 1969-70 Goodrich scored 20.0 ppg and 7.5 apg (both tops on the team). After the season he was traded back to the Lakers in exchange for Mel Counts.

With the Lakers, Goodrich guided the 1971-72 team to a 69-13 record and the NBA title as well as an NBA record 33 consecutive wins while playing with fellow Hall of Famers Jerry West and Wilt Chamberlain. Goodrich led the Lakers in scoring in 1971-72, 1972–73, 1973–74, and 1974-75 said Los Angeles Coach Bill Sharman, "Gail Goodrich is just a great offensive player". From the 1968-69 season through the 1975-76 season Goodrich scored an average of 22.4 points a game, among the best in the NBA during that period, while also averaging well over five assists per game.

The 1973-74 season was the best all-around season in his career. He was First-team All-NBA and again an All-star. he scored over 2,000 points and averaged 25.3 points a game—4th in the league in scoring, while leading the NBA in free throws made and free throw attempts as he drove the basket perhaps more than at any point in his career. In 1973-74 he was in the second year of earning $180,000 per season.

Goodrich, then 31, dropped about 10 pounds (4.5 kg) for the 1974-75 season stating, "I decided prior to this season that I would lose about 10 pounds to get down to my college playing weight of 172 ... I'm sure it helps with my quickness and my stamina." Goodrich led the Lakers in scoring with a 22.6 per game average.

Goodrich held out in the Fall of 1975 and missed the first four games while playing out his option allowing to be a free agent the following season. In the 1975-76 season Goodrich switched roles, becoming the "playmaking" guard rather than the "shooting guard", switching spots with Lucius Allen. Goodrich had played a similar role in Phoenix but during his time with Jerry West, Goodrich was the shooting guard. Ironically, Allen was the shooting guard when he played with Oscar Robertson on the champion Milwaukee Buck team. So, both were familiar with the roles. According to a Long Beach paper the switch worked and "did wonders for a slumping Laker team". That same season the Laker had acquired Kareem Abdul-Jabbar to upgrade the center position from Elmore Smith.

On August 6, 1976, Gail signed a three-year contract reportedly worth $1.4 million with the New Orleans Jazz where he teamed in the backcourt with Pete Maravich. Early in the 1976-77 season Goodrich sustained an Achilles heel injury that required surgery. In January, 1977, Goodrich filed a lawsuit against the Lakers alleging that he was shorted over $150,000 of his $275,000 1975-76 season salary due to fines for missing training camp and for pre-season and some regular season games. The lawsuit also asked for $75,000 punitive damages stating that the fines were a "breach of contract". He rehabilitated the leg and prepared hard for the 1977-78 season and it seemingly paid off as he averaged 16.1 points a game and shot a career-best .495 from the field as a 34-year old guard.

He played one final campaign in 1978-79, the 14th of his career. After averaging 12.7 ppg in 74 games, Goodrich retired, having scored 19,181 career points.

His impact upon the Laker franchise extended far beyond his playing years. When he signed with the New Orleans Jazz in 1976, per league rules, the Lakers were to receive compensation for losing a veteran free agent. The Lakers and Jazz agreed to send New Orleans' highest pick from the 1979 draft to Los Angeles (along with a 1977 and 1978 number one pick and an additional second round pick). When the Jazz finished the 1978-79 season with the worst record in the NBA, the Lakers were eligible for one of the top two picks of that draft. Until 1985, the two teams with the worst records flipped a coin to determine which team would receive the top pick. The Lakers won the coin flip against the Chicago Bulls, who selected David Greenwood 2nd. The Lakers selected Magic Johnson. They used the other top pick in 1977 for Kenny Carr and they traded the 1978 #1 selection to Boston - who took Freeman Williams.

For his career, Goodrich was a 5-time All-Star and was All-NBA in 1973-74. He is still the third all-time scorer among lefties in NBA history. At the time of his retirement in 1979, Goodrich was 11th all-time in scoring and 10th all-time in assists.

Goodrich ranks among all-time Laker leaders in several categories, including total points (6th, 13,044), assists (7th, 2,863), free throws made (7th, 2,830) and games played (9th, 687).