Lakers legends support hiring of Showtime guard Byron Scott

Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Jamaal Wilkes all turned out for Tuesday's press conference introducing Byron Scott as the newest head coach of the Los Angeles Lakers. Pretty good company, right?

The connection here, of course, is the Showtime Era in Lakers' lore, with the four players having a combined 17 NBA championship rings, 15 of them with the Lakers. And while Scott and Wilkes didn't overlap during their Lakers tenures, the new bench boss did spend 1983-1989 with Abdul-Jabbar and Johnson.

With the franchise embracing its proud history, Scott is certainly a face they can sell to their fanbase. Three rings in 11 seasons as a Laker is going to earn you some cache with die-hards eager to get back to the playoffs and hang a 17th banner at Staples Center.

And while Scott has just a 416-521 career coaching record with two NBA Finals losses in New Jersey as his peak, his Showtime cohorts sound certain he's the right man to restore prominence to the forum blue and gold. 

Here's Magic Johnson on the hiring:

Showtime's back, baby.
...
We came here today to support our brother and our former teammate and champion Byron Scott and also we're here to support the Laker organization. This is a great day for all the former Lakers as well as Lakers fans all over the world. We're just excited for what Byron will bring to the table and get back to playing Laker basketball. ... We wish we could put on a uniform for you and help you, but we're here supporting you and will support you throughout. Again, congrats to the Laker organization. You chose the right guy.
...
If it was any other coach we probably all wouldn't be here. So, that shows you the type of pride we have in Byron.

You can view highlights from the press conference in the video below:

[Courtesy: Lakers Nation]