The entire Los Angeles Lakers family was devastated to learn of the passing of former center Elden Campbell at the age of 57 years old. The cause of death is currently unknown, but Campbell was a beloved member of the Lakers during his time with the team in the 1990s.
Campbell was the Lakers’ first-round pick, 27th overall, in the 1990 NBA Draft and spent nine seasons with the team before being traded to the Charlotte Hornets in 1999. Known for his calm demeanor and effortless style of play, Campbell earned the nickname “Big Easy,” which stuck with him throughout his career.
As news of his death came out, many of Campbell’s former teammates with the Lakers, including Magic Johnson, Mychal Thompson and Cedric Ceballos, took to social media to reflect on who he was as a player, teammate and person, and to offer their condolences to his family:
RIP Big Easy 🙏 pic.twitter.com/0PtBnKXAmK
— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) December 3, 2025
I just received devastating news that my former Lakers teammate and friend Elden Campbell has passed away. He was such a gentle soul. As a basketball player, he was extremely athletic. I loved throwing lobs to Elden because he could jump out the gym and had so much talent! Cookie…
— Earvin Magic Johnson (@MagicJohnson) December 3, 2025
Appreciate evry day my frends…My buddy n teammate…Elden Campbell ONLY 57…Gone Too Soon…Elden was a nice nice guy…🙏🏽😞😔😢
— Mychal Thompson (@champagnennuts) December 3, 2025
While Campbell was never a big-time star, he was still an excellent contributor for those popular Lakers teams in the mid-90s which also featured the likes of Eddie Jones, Nick Van Exel and Ceballos. In fact, Jones was also part of that trade to the Charlotte Hornets which brought back Glen Rice.
In nine seasons with the Lakers, Campbell averaged 10.4 points, 5.8 rebounds and 1.7 blocks and was actually the leading scorer from 1990-1991 through the 1998-1999 seasons. Campbell would finish his career with stints on the Hornets, Seattle Supersonics, New Jersey Nets and Detroit Pistons, with whom he won his lone NBA Championship, before retiring in 2005.
Campbell was also a local product, having been born in Southern California and attending Morningside High School in Inglewood before going to Clemson where he had a stellar four-year college career.
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