Lakers: Back to winning ways

Legends: West, Chamberlain, Johnson, Jabbar, Baylor

As the Lakers celebrate another NBA championship, BBC Sport Online's Kevin Asseo compares this year's side to the great Laker teams of the past.

In winning their second straight NBA title with the most dominant play-off run in history, the Los Angeles Lakers have justified the label that will now be applied to them - dynasty.

Their post-season winning percentage of .938, in 2001, is the best ever.

And, given the relative youth of their two key players, it is not unthinkable that this Laker side will put a stranglehold on the championship for years to come.

Kobe Bryant, who has silenced critics who previously called him a selfish player by becoming one of the game's best all-around players, is only 22.

Kareem: All-time NBA points leader

And centre Shaquille O'Neal, an unstoppable force in the middle, is just 29 and shows no sign of losing his desire to win titles.

"The first championship was just to get the monkey off my back," said O'Neal.

"The ones I get from now on will be to try to stamp my name in history."

There is no doubt these Lakers are the class of today's NBA.

The question is, how does this team compare to the great Laker teams and players of the past?

The Lakers are one of the NBA's proudest franchises.

Their 13 championships are a close second to the Boston Celtics' record of 16, and many of the game's greatest ever players have turned out in Laker gold.

Johnson: A magician with the ball

In the late-40's and early-50's, the Minneapolis Lakers - as they were then known - became the first true dynasty in the NBA, winning five titles in six years behind the sport's first superstar, George Mikan.

At two inches short of seven foot, Mikan was considered a giant in his day, dominating smaller players and changing the way the game was played.

Soon, every team sought a "big man" to play centre.

The next great Laker team came together in the 60's, after a move from lake-strewn Minneapolis to barren Los Angeles made them the West Coast's first NBA franchise.

In their first decade in LA, the Lakers had two of the greatest offensive talents to ever play the game, Elgin Baylor and Jerry West.

Baylor could beat you in a number of ways - scoring, rebounding, passing - while West was a silky-smooth playmaker, dubbed "Mr. Clutch" because of his flawless play under pressure.

I'm happy, but I'm also greedy, and I'm not done

  Shaquille O'Neal

Unfortunately for their team, this was also the era of Bill Russell's indomitable Boston Celtics, and Los Angeles were denied a championship despite seven trips to the NBA Finals.

The Lakers added to their list of all-time great players when they acquired centre Wilt Chamberlain in 1968.

Although in the twilight of his career, Chamberlain was still an incredible talent, leading the 1972 vintage to their first title in 18 years.

'Showtime'

Then came the "Showtime" Lakers of the 80's, inspired by Magic Johnson, a point guard like no other.

Arguably the greatest passer ever to play, there was nothing he could not do on a basketball court.

On the receiving end of Magic's jaw-dropping passes was Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, the NBA's all-time leading scorer and - alongside Chamberlain, Russell and possibly Shaq - one of the best centres in history.

  Golden Lakers

Point Guard: Johnson

Shooting Guard: West

Small Forward: Baylor

Power Forward: Worthy

Centre: Abdul-Jabbar

Add James Worthy to the mix, an explosive forward who played his best in the big games, and it is easy to see why the Lakers won five championships in that decade.

The 2001 Lakers are not yet on quite the same level as their "Showtime" predecessors, but the next few years may change that.

O'Neal and Bryant have plenty of good years ahead of them and a run of several titles seems a distinct possibility.

"I'm happy," O'Neal said: "But I'm also greedy, and I'm not done."