The morning shoot-around that has become standard practice in the NBA originated with the Lakers when Bill Sharman was the coach in 1971. As West tells it, Sharman had often sought out school gyms while a player with the Celtics to practice his shooting on the day of games. As a coach, he decided such practice would benefit the Lakers, but he needed the buy-in of Wilt Chamberlain, who had a reputation for sleeping past noon. Wilt agreed, but only if the additional practice proved productive, which it did, as the Lakers won a record 33 games in a row during the 1971-72 season.
