Last Updated on July 29, 2026 by Mat Diekhake

League Search Page > NBA > Los Angeles Lakers > Roster & Statistics

The 1978–79 Los Angeles Lakers relied on Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s dominant interior scoring, rebounding, and rim protection, while Norm Nixon orchestrated the offense as the primary playmaker and Jamaal Wilkes supplied efficient wing scoring. Adrian Dantley added another potent scoring option, giving the team balanced offensive production. Excellent shooting efficiency, strong rebounding, and unselfish ball movement defined a well-rounded attack built around an elite frontcourt presence. 

Roster

No. Player Pos Height Weight Birthdate College/From
1 Brad Davis G 6’3″ 180 lb Dec 17, 1955 Maryland
11 Ollie Johnson F 6’6″ 200 lb May 11, 1949 Temple
15 Don Chaney G 6’5″ 210 lb Mar 22, 1946 Houston
20 Ron Boone G 6’2″ 200 lb Sep 6, 1946 Idaho State
21 Norm Nixon G 6’2″ 185 lb Oct 11, 1955 Duquesne
25 Kenny Carr F 6’7″ 220 lb Aug 15, 1955 NC State
30 Jim Chones C 6’11” 220 lb Nov 30, 1949 Marquette
31 Jamaal Wilkes F 6’6″ 190 lb May 2, 1953 UCLA
32 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar C 7’2″ 225 lb Apr 16, 1947 UCLA
33 Earl Tatum G/F 6’4″ 185 lb Jul 26, 1953 Marquette
40 Don Ford F 6’9″ 215 lb Dec 31, 1952 UC Santa Barbara

Regular Season Per Game

Player Pos Age G GS MPG PPG RPG APG SPG BPG TO FGA FG% 3PA 3P% FTA FT%
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar C 31 80 0 39.5 23.8 12.8 5.4 1.0 4.0 3.5 16.8 .577 — — 5.9 .736
Norm Nixon PG 23 82 82 38.4 17.1 2.8 9.0 2.5 0.2 2.8 14.0 .542 — — 2.5 .775
Jamaal Wilkes SF 25 82 82 35.5 18.6 7.4 2.8 1.6 0.3 2.7 15.1 .504 — — 4.4 .751
Adrian Dantley SF 23 60 0 29.6 17.3 5.7 2.3 1.1 0.2 2.6 12.2 .510 — — 5.7 .854
Lou Hudson SG 34 78 0 21.6 9.8 1.8 1.8 0.7 0.2 1.3 8.2 .517 — — 1.6 .887
Don Ford PF 26 79 0 19.5 6.7 3.4 1.3 0.6 0.3 1.2 5.7 .507 — — 1.1 .809
Ron Boone SG 32 82 0 19.3 7.4 1.8 1.9 0.8 0.1 1.8 6.9 .455 — — 1.3 .865
Jim Price PG 29 75 0 16.1 5.3 1.6 2.9 0.9 0.2 1.3 4.6 .497 — — 1.1 .696
Kenny Carr PF 23 72 0 16.0 7.4 4.1 0.8 0.5 0.4 1.6 6.3 .500 — — 1.9 .606
Dave Robisch C 29 80 0 15.2 4.8 3.6 1.2 0.3 0.3 0.7 4.2 .446 — — 1.4 .748
Brad Davis PG 23 5 0 13.0 3.8 0.2 1.8 0.4 0.0 1.2 2.2 .727 — — 0.8 .750
Ron Carter SG 22 46 0 7.2 3.1 1.0 0.5 0.4 0.2 0.9 2.7 .435 — — 1.2 .667
Michael Cooper SG 22 3 0 2.3 2.0 0.0 0.0 0.3 0.0 0.3 2.0 .500 — — 0.0 —
Team Totals — — 82 82 241.2 112.9 42.8 28.5 9.7 6.1 19.1 90.2 .517 25.5 .769 25.5 .769

Playoff Per Game

Player Pos Age G GS MPG PPG RPG APG SPG BPG TO FGA FG% 3PA 3P% FTA FT%
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar C 31 8 0 45.9 28.5 12.6 4.8 1.0 4.1 3.6 19.0 .579 — — 7.8 .839
Norm Nixon PG 23 8 8 40.9 15.4 3.5 11.8 1.4 0.0 3.0 14.9 .471 — — 1.9 .733
Jamaal Wilkes SF 25 8 0 38.4 18.4 8.5 2.0 1.9 0.3 1.9 16.0 .477 — — 4.6 .676
Adrian Dantley SF 23 8 0 29.5 17.6 4.1 1.4 0.8 0.1 2.4 11.1 .562 — — 6.5 .788
Ron Boone SG 32 8 0 28.3 11.8 1.9 1.8 1.1 0.0 1.8 9.6 .481 — — 2.6 .952
Don Ford PF 26 8 0 17.3 4.1 2.8 0.9 0.4 0.3 0.5 3.8 .533 — — 0.4 .333
Jim Price PG 29 8 0 16.0 2.5 1.0 2.3 0.6 0.0 1.0 3.8 .300 — — 0.5 .500
Lou Hudson SG 34 6 0 15.0 6.3 0.7 1.3 0.2 0.0 0.8 5.3 .531 — — 0.7 1.000
Kenny Carr PF 23 8 0 14.6 5.4 2.1 0.5 0.5 0.3 1.4 4.4 .543 — — 1.0 .625
Dave Robisch C 29 5 0 6.4 1.6 2.0 0.4 0.0 0.0 0.6 1.0 .600 — — 0.4 1.000
Ron Carter SG 22 2 0 1.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.5 .000 — — 0.0 —
Team Totals — — 8 8 246.3 109.4 38.3 26.5 7.8 5.0 16.8 87.3 .510 26.0 .784 26.0 .784

Regular Season Totals

Player Pos Age G GS MIN PTS REB AST STL BLK TO FGA FGM 3PA 3PM FTA FTM
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar C 31 80 0 3157 1903 1025 431 76 316 282 1347 777 — — 474 349
Norm Nixon PG 23 82 82 3145 1404 231 737 201 17 231 1149 623 — — 204 158
Jamaal Wilkes SF 25 82 82 2915 1524 609 227 134 27 224 1242 626 — — 362 272
Adrian Dantley SF 23 60 0 1775 1040 342 138 63 12 155 733 374 — — 342 292
Lou Hudson SG 34 78 0 1686 768 140 141 58 17 99 636 329 — — 124 110
Ron Boone SG 32 82 0 1583 608 145 154 66 11 147 569 259 — — 104 90
Don Ford PF 26 79 0 1540 528 268 101 51 25 93 450 228 — — 89 72
Dave Robisch C 29 80 0 1219 386 285 97 20 25 53 336 150 — — 115 86
Jim Price PG 29 75 0 1207 397 123 218 66 12 100 344 171 — — 79 55
Kenny Carr PF 23 72 0 1149 533 292 60 38 31 116 450 225 — — 137 83
Ron Carter SG 22 46 0 332 144 45 25 17 7 40 124 54 — — 54 36
Brad Davis PG 23 5 0 65 19 1 9 2 0 6 11 8 — — 4 3
Michael Cooper SG 22 3 0 7 6 0 0 1 0 1 6 3 — — 0 0
Team Totals — — 82 82 19780 9260 3506 2338 793 500 1547 7397 3827 100 20 2088 1606

Playoff Totals

Player Pos Age G GS MIN PTS REB AST STL BLK TO FGA FGM 3PA 3PM FTA FTM
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar C 31 8 0 367 228 101 38 8 33 29 152 88 — — 62 52
Norm Nixon PG 23 8 0 327 123 28 94 11 0 24 119 56 — — 15 11
Jamaal Wilkes SF 25 8 0 307 147 68 16 15 2 15 128 61 — — 37 25
Adrian Dantley SF 23 8 0 236 141 33 11 6 1 19 89 50 — — 52 41
Ron Boone SG 32 8 0 226 94 15 14 9 0 14 77 37 — — 21 20
Don Ford PF 26 8 0 138 33 22 7 3 2 4 30 16 — — 3 1
Jim Price PG 29 8 0 128 20 8 18 5 0 8 30 9 — — 4 2
Kenny Carr PF 23 8 0 117 43 17 4 4 2 11 35 19 — — 8 5
Lou Hudson SG 34 6 0 90 38 4 8 1 0 5 32 17 — — 4 4
Dave Robisch C 29 5 0 32 8 10 2 0 0 3 5 3 — — 2 2
Ron Carter SG 22 2 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 — — 0 0
Team Totals — — 8 0 1970 875 306 212 62 40 132 698 356 — — 208 163

HeatingUp Impact Index: Team Impact Spotlight

Player Name Role Tier MPG Usage Tier PPG RPG APG STK Impact Index* Notes
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Alpha Scorer / Anchor 39.5 High 23.8 12.8 5.4 5.0 23.5 Dominant two-way presence; MVP-level production; defensive anchor with elite rebounding.
Norm Nixon Primary Facilitator 38.4 High 17.1 2.8 9.0 2.7 16.8 High assist load; playmaking engine; contributes modest defense; key driver of team offense.
Jamaal Wilkes Secondary Scorer / Two-Way 35.5 Medium-High 18.6 7.4 2.8 1.9 15.4 Efficient scoring, solid rebounding for a wing; strong defensive contribution; versatile role.
Adrian Dantley Scoring Specialist 29.6 Medium 17.3 5.7 2.3 1.3 13.3 Efficient scoring machine; limited defensive impact; growing all-around contributor.
Lou Hudson Veteran Spot-Up / Scorer 21.6 Medium-Low 9.8 1.8 1.8 0.9 6.7 Provides scoring punch in limited minutes; veteran leadership; low defensive load.
Don Ford Role Player / Energy 19.5 Low 6.7 3.4 1.3 0.9 5.7 Contributes energy, rebounds, and occasional scoring; solid role player.
Ron Boone Veteran Glue / Shooter 19.3 Low 7.4 1.8 1.9 0.9 5.5 Floor spacing and steady minutes; minimal defensive impact; reliable scorer.
Jim Price Backup Facilitator 16.1 Medium-Low 5.3 1.6 2.9 1.1 5.5 Solid backup PG; facilitates offense efficiently; minor defensive contributions.
Kenny Carr Development PF 16.0 Low 7.4 4.1 0.8 0.9 6.6 Young player showing rebounding promise; defensive activity growing; scoring limited.
Dave Robisch Backup C / Role Player 15.2 Low 4.8 3.6 1.2 0.6 5.1 Provides depth at center; modest scoring; defensive presence limited but active.
Brad Davis Fringe Rotation 13.0 Low 3.8 0.2 1.8 0.4 3.1 Minimal impact; limited minutes; developmental PG.
Ron Carter Spot Minutes / Development 7.2 Very Low 3.1 1.0 0.5 0.6 2.6 Bench scorer; small sample; limited impact.
Michael Cooper Very Limited Debut 2.3 Very Low 2.0 0.0 0.0 0.3 1.2 Only appeared 3 games; negligible impact.