From Magic Johnson and Shaquille O’Neal to Kobe Bryant and LeBron James, the iconic players of the purple and gold have all been documented by the same man: Andrew D. Bernstein.
A photographer covering the NBA for the last 35 years, Bernstein was honored by the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame on Thursday, receiving the Curt Gowdy Award for print media excellence.
Bernstein traveled to Springfield, Mass., for the ceremony, where he became just the second photographer to ever accept the award.
Bernstein, 60, has covered the Lakers since the 1983 All-Star Game at the Forum. Over the three-plus decades since, he has become the official photographer for most of the city’s professional sports teams, including the Lakers, Clippers Dodgers and Kings.
Outside of L.A., he was the official photographer for the United States Dream Team during the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, and played a key role in the creation of the NBA Photos company four years later.
Bernstein also covered all 20 seasons of the Lakers seasons featuring Kobe Bryant, who took to Twitter to congratulate his award-winning friend.
Lakers legend and President of Basketball Operations Magic Johnson also saluted Bernstein, as did current Laker Kyle Kuzma.