Lakers Season Countdown: 13 days, Wilt Chamberlain

We're getting ready for a brand new season of Los Angeles Lakers basketball, so to count down the days we'll be looking at the best Lakers to wear the number. We'll continue at 13 days until the regular season begins, with one of the most dominant players to ever play the game.

Who wore it the best: Wilt Chamberlain

(Credit: Sports Illustrated, Getty Images)

Wilt Chamberlain was a territorial pick in the 1959 NBA draft by the Philadelphia Warriors. Chamberlain spent the first 5 and a half years of his career with the Philadelphia/San Francisco Warriors where he dominated the league. Over those 5 and a half seasons, Chamberlain averaged 41.5 points & 25.1 rebounds per game. With the Warriors facing financial issues in the 1965 season, the Warriors traded him to the Philadelphia 76ers where he played 5 seasons and averaged 27.6 points & 23.9 rebounds per game.

Following the 1968 season, Wilt demanded a trade out of Philadelphia. He was traded to Los Angeles for Darral Imhoff, Jerry Chambers and Archie Clark. Chamberlain got hurt in his first year as a Laker and was never really the same, although he still put up ungodly numbers. The 1972-73 would see Wilt Chamberlain finally get Jerry West and the Lakers over the hump and earn their first NBA Championship after losing the NBA Finals 7 times since the Lakers moved to LA in 1960.

Following the 1973 season in which the Lakers lost in the NBA Finals to the New York Knicks, Chamberlain agreed to be a player-coach for the San Diego Conquistadors of the rival American Basketball Association. The Conquistadors agreed to pay Chamberlain more than twice what his Lakers salary was. But after an unsuccessful year in San Diego, Wilt retired from the game of basketball. Wilt was elected into the NBA Hall of Fame in 1978. Wilt died in 1999 of congestive heart failure. The #13 has since been retired by the Lakers.

Who wore it last: Dwight Jones

Dwight Jones, a 6'10" power forward, was selected by the Atlanta Hawks with the 9th overall pick in the 1973 NBA draft. He may be most known for being the leading scorer and rebounder for the 1972 Olympic team that controversially lost to the Soviet Union in the gold medal game.

Dwight played 10 years in the NBA, 3 with the Hawks, 3 with the Rockets & 3 and a half with the Bulls, before being traded and playing the final 32 games of his career with the Lakers. Over his 32 game Laker career, Dwight served as a backup big man and averaged 4.9 points & 3.6 rebounds in 15.3 minutes per game.

#13 - Who has worn it:

Tony Jaros (1949-1951)

Jim Holstein (1953)

Corky Devlin (1958)

Wilt Chamberlain (1969-1973)

Dwight Jones (1983)