Lakers jersey history No. 20 — Gary Payton

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.

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Gary Payton became an NBA legend during the 1990s as a member of the Seattle SuperSonics. He established himself as one of the greatest defenders in basketball history while also being a significant scoring threat and a strong facilitator, and in doing so, he made the Sonics into perennial contenders.

But by the latter stages of his career, the 6-foot-4 guard was still without a championship ring, and in 2003, he signed with the Lakers along with Utah Jazz superstar power forward Karl Malone in the hopes of rectifying that issue.

Payton's numbers went down significantly during the 2003-04 season, as he had to defer to Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant while fitting into coach Phil Jackson's triangle offense. He averaged 14.6 points and 5.5 assists a game after putting up 18.3 points and 7.4 assists a game in his 13 prior seasons, and there were times when he was frustrated over his role.

But he still helped the Lakers reinvigorate themselves after failing to win a fourth straight world title in 2003. In 2004, they got to the NBA Finals, only to lose in five games to the Detroit Pistons.

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Payton was traded to the Boston Celtics during the summer of 2004, and a year later, he reunited with O'Neal on the Miami Heat. The two won it all in 2006, and Payton retired following the 2006-07 season.

This article originally appeared on LeBron Wire: Lakers jersey history No. 20 — Gary Payton