Jerry West was hospitalized for exhaustion following the acquisition of Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O'Neal as general manager of the Lakers in 1996.

"It got very discouraging — there were so many obstacles along the way, it was a long, drawn-out thing — but [Lakers owner] Jerry Buss said, 'Let's keep going.' It was easier then, because there weren't a lot of people around [in the front office]. It became a quest. We felt it was important to rejuvenate our franchise."