John Albert Kundla was an American college and professional basketball coach. He was the first head coach for the Minneapolis Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA) and its predecessors, the Basketball Association of America (BAA) and the National Basketball League (NBL), serving 12 seasons, from 1947 to 1959. His teams won six league championships, one in the NBL, one in the BAA, and four in the NBA. Kundla was the head basketball coach at the University of St. Thomas in Saint Paul for one season in 1946–47, and at the University of Minnesota for ten seasons, from 1959 to 1968. He was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1995 and the College Basketball Hall of Fame in 2006.
Kundla in 2014
1950 NBA Champion Minneapolis Lakers
George Mikan, Minneapolis Lakers, 1948
History of the Los Angeles Lakers
The Los Angeles Lakers franchise has a long and storied history, predating the formation of the National Basketball Association (NBA).
Hall of Famer George Mikan (#99) led the Lakers franchise to their first five NBA championships. He is described by the NBA's official website as the "first superstar" in league history.
The 1949–50 NBA champion Minneapolis Lakers
Jerry West (#44) led the team to nine NBA Finals appearances in the 1960s and 1970s. Nicknamed "Mr. Clutch", his silhouette is featured on the NBA's official logo.
Hall of Famer Gail Goodrich was a Laker for nine seasons in the 1960s and 1970s, and played in four NBA Finals.
