Jan. 23, 2026, 8:27 p.m. PT
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.
Travis Wear, a 6-foot-10 forward, grew up in Southern California and played his college basketball at the University of North Carolina and the University of California, Los Angeles. He went undrafted in 2014 and spent his rookie season in the NBA with the New York Knicks.
After playing in Spain the following season, Wear joined the Lakers’ NBA Developmental League (now the G League) affiliate, the D-Fenders (now the South Bay Lakers) in 2016. The big-league Lakers then called him up late in the 2017-18 season.
He appeared in 17 games with them that year and averaged 4.4 points in 13.4 minutes a game. Wear returned to the G League for the 2018-19 campaign, but an injury in January 2020 practically ended his playing career.
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