Los Angeles Lazers

History

Jerry Buss, the owner of California Sports, the parent company of the Los Angeles Lakers, Kings, Strings of World Team Tennis and the Inglewood Forum, which was home to all three teams. Buss was always looking for innovative ways to add additional creative programming to the Forum, which is why he called upon his oldest son Johnny Buss, and long time California Sports executive Ron Weinstein to bring indoor soccer to Los Angeles. In 1981, Buss obtained the rights of the Philadelphia Fever of the Major Indoor Soccer League (MISL). Buss and Weinstein named the team the Los Angeles Lazers and the team began playing in the Fall of 1982. The team’s name stemmed from the up-and-coming laser light show industry, which management believed would depict a perfect synergy of the lightning fast pace of indoor soccer. It became a pre-game ritual for every LA Lazers game to have a laser show displayed on the walls of the Forum, which even intrigued Neil Diamond to visit the Lazer offices in order to investigate and ultimately incorporate this new laser technology into his own onstage live performances. Following in the footsteps of the "Showtime" Los Angeles Lakers, the Lazers drew many celebrities to their games including Cher, James Caan, Ricky Schroeder and Neil Diamond. The "Laker Girls" performed double duty from 1982–1989 performing as the "Lazer Girls" at all home games. This opportunity played an integral part in the career of Paula Abdul, who was the lead dancer and choreographer of the team.

Johnny Buss was president of the Los Angeles Lazers from 1982–1985. When he went on to pursue other endeavors and his younger brother Jim Buss took over as president for the 1985–86 season. In 1986, Jerry Buss attended his first MISL Board of Governors meeting. He strongly suggested to the board that they begin to reduce player salaries and gradually move the league into the summer months. Dr. Buss continued to play for three more seasons and after recognizing the MISL was not moving in the proper direction, in the summer of 1989, he shared with Lazers executive Vice President, Ron Weinstein that he was closing the doors on the Lazers. He told Weinstein that if he ever wanted to start a professional indoor soccer league that played in the summer months with a fiscally responsible budget, then he would mentor him while tying the new league into the NBA and NHL. Thus the seed was planted in Ron for the founding of the Continental Indoor Soccer League (CISL).

Arena

The Lazers played their home games in The Forum in Inglewood, California.

Coaches

Honors

Coach of the Year

Rookie of the Year

Television and radio coverage

In season one, The Los Angeles Lazers games were broadcast on Cable Radio Network. Beginning in season two, Bill MacDonald came to Buss and Weinstein and asked permission to broadcast the Lazer Home Games on KBOB Radio out of Pasadena. Bill’s family agreed to purchase the air time and thus the beginning of Bill’s long running career was launched. During the course of the 1983–84 season, the Lazers made the first entree into the television arena by broadcasting a few games on the Lakers and Kings KCAL 9 television network. Chick Hearn, the Lakers broadcaster and Bob Miller, the Los Angeles Kings broadcaster, shared the play by play responsibilities over the course of the season. During the 1984–85 season, the Los Angeles Lazers began to broadcast their games on Prime Ticket, which was the regional sports network created by Dr. Jerry Buss, for Southern California. This first Lazers broadcast was only the second event to have ever been aired on the Prime Ticket Network. Joel Meyers, a new and upcoming telecaster, joined Bill MacDonald to become the dynamic team that announced every play from then on for the Los Angeles Lazers.