Elmore Smith holds the top spot for block leader in a single season for the Lakers.
The Los Angeles Lakers have had a number of legendary rim protectors suit up in the purple and gold throughout their 78 years in the NBA. This article will dig into the greatest shot-blocking seasons in franchise history, with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar filling out nearly the entire list. Note that blocks did not become an official NBA stat until the 1973-74 season.
Elmore Smith – 1974, 4.9 BPG
In the inaugural season when blocks became an official stat, Smith led the NBA with 4.9 blocks per game during his first of two campaigns with the Lakers, and his 393 total rejections are still the most in franchise history. He added 12.5 points and 11.2 rebounds while appearing in 81 contests, compiling 33 double-doubles and six triple-doubles (points-boards-blocks). In October 1973, ‘The Rejector’ tallied a career-best 17 blocks against the Portland Trail Blazers, setting an all-time NBA record that remains intact to this day. Smith, who was drafted third overall by the Buffalo Braves in 1971, also spent time with the Cleveland Cavaliers and Milwaukee Bucks during his eight-year career. The seven-footer averaged 13.4 ppg, 10.6 rpg and 2.9 bpg across 562 contests between ‘71 and 1979.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar – 1976, 4.1 BPG
Abdul-Jabbar’s league-leading 4.1 blocks a night he registered during the 1975-76 season holds down the second spot. At age 28 and in his first campaign in Los Angeles, ‘Murdock’ played all 82 games and posted 27.7 points, 5.0 assists and 1.5 steals while pacing the NBA with 16.9 rebounds, a career-best mark for the 7-foot-2 center. Abdul-Jabbar’s brilliance on the court helped him earn his fourth MVP award, a seventh consecutive All-Star nod, a sixth All-NBA selection, and a fifth All-Defensive selection in just his seventh professional campaign.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar – 1979, 4.0 BPG
A few years later in 1978-79, Abdul-Jabbar led the NBA in blocks for the second time in his legendary career, this time amassing 4.0 bpg in 80 contests. The former first overall pick by the Bucks in the 1969 draft added 23.8 points, 12.8 boards, 5.4 assists and 1.0 steals per game, matching a personal best with 11 swats on one occasion. Now at 31 years old, the ‘Big Fella’ was rewarded with his ninth All-NBA and All-Star selections, his eighth All-Defensive honor, and finished fourth in the MVP race.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar – 1980, 3.4 BPG
Abdul-Jabbar, across all 82 regular-season games, for the fifth and final time in his 20-year career, boasted averages of 24.8 points, 10.8 rebounds, 4.5 assists, 1.0 steals and 3.4 blocks. He led the NBA in blocks for the fourth and final occasion and set a career-best mark in terms of field-goal percentage (60.4) while being named the MVP of the league once again. Abdul-Jabbar also wreaked havoc in the postseason, averaging 31.9 ppg, 12.1 rpg and a playoff-best 3.9 bpg to help secure his first NBA championship with the purple and gold.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar – 1977, 3.2 BPG
In 1976-77, Abdul-Jabbar recorded 26.2 points, 13.3 rebounds, 3.9 assists, 1.2 steals and 3.2 blocks across 82 contests, making his final entry the only one in which he didn’t lead the league in rejections. However, the New York, New York native finished with the best field goal (57.9) and effective field-goal percentage (57.9) on his way to back-to-back MVP trophies in his first two campaigns in Los Angeles. Over the course of his 20 seasons in the NBA, Abdul-Jabbar recorded averages of 24.6 ppg, 11.2 rpg, 3.6 apg and 2.6 bpg in 1,560 total games between 1969 and 1989 with the Lakers and Bucks. The 1995 Hall of Fame inductee was a 19-time All-Star, 15-time All-NBA, 11-time All-Defensive, six-time MVP, six-time NBA champion, two-time Finals MVP, two-time scoring champ, four-time blocks champ, the 1969-70 Rookie of the Year, and a member of the NBA’s 75th Anniversary Team.
