- published: 22 Jul 2016
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Mitchell Kupchak (born May 24, 1954) is an American former basketball player and current general manager of the Los Angeles Lakers.
Kupchak played for Brentwood High School in New York. He was an All-American on the North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball team, and named Atlantic Coast Conference Player of the Year in his senior season. Kupchak played on the gold medal winning team at the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal.
Kupchak was drafted by the Washington Bullets in 1976 and was named to the NBA All-Rookie Team. He had four productive seasons with Washington and was part of the team that won the NBA championship in 1978. He signed a long term contract with the Lakers in 1981 at the behest of Earvin "Magic" Johnson, who told owner Jerry Buss, "If we could get Mitch Kupchak, I know we could win", after the team's playoff upset. Unfortunately, 26 games into the season, Kupchak injured his knee and did not play again until the 1983-84 season.