James WorthyLos Angeles Lakers · #42
James Worthy is a retired forward best known with the Los Angeles Lakers. Big Game James of Showtime. Career averages: 17.6 points, 5.1 rebounds and 3 assists per game.
James Worthy — the report card
Read his whole game at a glance, then dive into any skill. Grades from the DNA model + real production.
Where James Worthy stands
Live ladders from the Balladex models, and what he's chasing. Rankings recompute nightly from real production, accolades, and search demand.
James Worthy — every number, three levels deep
Headline → metric → the raw history behind it. Real career data; tracking-only metrics labeled.
How the model sees James Worthy
Projection = per-minute rate × projected minutes. Rates are recency- and health-weighted, aged along a per-stat curve, and adjusted for live usage/role. No black box — every number shows its work.
James Worthy career stats, season by season
| Season | GP | MIN | PTS | REB | AST | FG% | 3P% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1982-83 | 77 | 25.6 | 13.4 | 5.2 | 1.7 | .579 | .250 |
| 1983-84 | 82 | 29.5 | 14.5 | 6.3 | 2.5 | .556 | .000 |
| 1984-85 CHIP | 80 | 33.7 | 17.6 | 6.4 | 2.5 | .572 | .000 |
| 1985-86 | 75 | 32.7 | 20.0 | 5.2 | 2.7 | .579 | .000 |
| 1986-87 CHIP | 82 | 34.4 | 19.4 | 5.7 | 2.8 | .539 | .000 |
| 1987-88 CHIP | 75 | 35.4 | 19.7 | 5.0 | 3.9 | .531 | .125 |
| 1988-89 | 81 | 36.5 | 20.5 | 6.0 | 3.6 | .548 | .087 |
| 1989-90 | 80 | 37.0 | 21.1 | 6.0 | 3.6 | .548 | .306 |
| 1990-91 | 78 | 38.6 | 21.4 | 4.6 | 3.5 | .492 | .289 |
| 1991-92 | 54 | 39.0 | 19.9 | 5.6 | 4.7 | .447 | .209 |
| 1992-93 | 82 | 28.8 | 14.9 | 3.0 | 3.4 | .447 | .270 |
| 1993-94 | 80 | 20.0 | 10.2 | 2.3 | 1.9 | .406 | .288 |
| Career | 926 | 32.4 | 17.6 | 5.1 | 3.0 |
The Lab
Every number, live and interactive. Real career data; models labeled.
Are the Los Angeles Lakers built to win?
Team projection rolled up from the roster + last-season baselines — and what it means for his role.
The Ballad of James Worthy
Birth to now — the making of a legend, narrated and scored.
Turning pro
Drafted 1982 as a Forward.
true
Game 7 of the 1988 Finals, the whole season on one night — and James Worthy chose it to record the only triple-double of his career: 36 points, 16 rebounds, 10 assists. From then on the nickname was permanent. Big Game James.
Chapter
The Lakers took him first overall in 1982 out of North Carolina, and he became Showtime's finisher — the man on the wing waiting for Magic's no-look feed, converting the fast break into pure theater with that unstoppable spin move down the baseline.
Chapter
Seven All-Star seasons, three championships, a career spent entirely in purple and gold. He never chased another city's lights because he was already standing under the brightest ones there are.
Chapter
The bigger the game, the bigger he played — the surest sign of a true leading man. When the stage was largest and the pressure heaviest, that was precisely when James Worthy did his finest work. That's not a stat line. That's a headliner.
Off the court
- Height
- 6' 9"
- Weight
- 225 lbs
- College
- North Carolina
- NBA debut
- 1982
- Draft
- 1982
- Jersey
- #42
Big Game James of Showtime.
A retired Hall of Famer and Los Angeles Lakers name.
James Worthy — frequently asked
The questions people ask most about James Worthy, answered.
