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.

As the Lakers approach their 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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In 2003, the Washington Wizards took point guard Steve Blake in the second round of the NBA draft out of the University of Maryland. He played for the Wizards, Portland Trail Blazers, Milwaukee Bucks, Denver Nuggets and Los Angeles Clippers during his first seven seasons and averaged 7.5 points and 4.3 assists in 25.7 minutes a game and shot 39.3% from 3-point range during that time.

Coming off their second straight world championship, the Lakers signed Blake as a free agent in 2010. He was essentially a replacement for Jordan Farmer, who had joined the New Jersey Nets, and it was hoped he would also improve the team’s outside shooting.

He didn’t quite meet expectations, however, as L.A. chased a three-peat. During his first season with the team, he made just 35.9% of his field-goal attempts and had a bout with the chickenpox late in the year. Just before the 2012-13 campaign, he sustained a puncture wound in his foot when he stepped on a spike strip in a beach parking lot. In three and a half seasons with the Lakers, Blake averaged 5.8 points and 3.5 assists in 23.9 minutes a game and shot 38.3% from both the field and from downtown.

The Lakers traded Blake midway through the 2013-14 season to the Golden State Warriors, and afterward, he closed out his NBA career with the Trail Blazers and Detroit Pistons. He then spent the 2016-17 season with the Sydney Kings of the National Basketball League (NBL) in Australia before returning to the States to serve as an assistant coach with the Trail Blazers and Phoenix Suns.

This article originally appeared on LeBron Wire: Lakers jersey history No. 5 — Steve Blake