Lakers rookie D'Angelo Russell: 'Tracy McGrady might have been the GOAT'

The Los Angeles Lakers bet the No. 2 pick in the 2015 draft that D'Angelo Russell could be the franchise's next generational star, the latest in an unbroken line stretching from George Mikan to Elgin Baylor to Jerry West to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar to Magic Johnson to Shaquille O'Neal, and, finally, to Kobe Bryant, whose presumed final NBA season will overlap with Russell's first in 2015-16.

But it isn't Bryant, or any of the Laker legends that preceded him, whom Russell apparently looks to as the paragon of NBA excellence. That distinction belongs to one of basketball's all-time great ciphers; a uniquely talented but oft-injured hybrid wing who never had much in the way of playoff success:

That may be a precarious can of worms to open with the notoriously proud Bryant still around, and likely itching to remind Russell how many more rings he owns than the so-called "GOAT."

McGrady, who recently had his jersey retired in China, had an eight-year, Hall of Fame peak that began in 2000, when Russell was 4 years old.

In his 15-year NBA career, he averaged 19.6 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 4.4 assists. He made seven All-Star games and seven All-NBA teams, won two scoring titles, and finished in the top eight in MVP voting six times.

He may have lacked the longevity of other all-time greats, but few could score like T-Mac in his prime.