Mystery Player #73
Wednesday, September 16, 2026 · already played
The answer
Spoiler for the puzzle of Wednesday, September 16, 2026. Today's puzzle is not revealed anywhere on this page.
Lafayette Lever
G · 1982–1994
Lafayette Lever's career
Lafayette Lever played 12 seasons between 1982 and 1994, across 3 franchises — Trail Blazers, Nuggets and Mavericks. Over 752 regular-season games he averaged 13.9 points, 6 rebounds and 6.2 assists, finishing with 10,433 career points. He was 2× All-Star and 1× All-NBA.
He entered the league in the 1982 draft, taken 11th overall in the lottery. That makes him a product of the 1980s, and his career totals should be read against the pace and rules of that period.
Across a long career of 12 seasons he was a rotation piece at 13.9 points per game. He was a genuine playmaker, not just a finisher.
- Games
- 752
- PPG
- 13.9
- RPG
- 6
- APG
- 6.2
- Points
- 10,433
- Rebounds
- 4,523
- Assists
- 4,696
- 3PM
- 162
Teams
- Trail Blazers · 1983–1984
- Nuggets · 1985–1990
- Mavericks · 1991–1992
- Mavericks · 1994
Honours
2× All-Star · 1× All-NBA · 1× All-Defensive
How the clues read
Every guess that day was scored against Lafayette Lever across nine categories. These were the values behind the grid.
- Position:
- G
- Debut season:
- 1982
- Status:
- Retired
- Nationality:
- USA
- Teams:
- Trail Blazers, Nuggets, Mavericks, Mavericks
- Points per game:
- 13.9
- Championships:
- 0
- All-Star selections:
- 2
Why this was a fair answer
Answers are never obscure by design: the pool is every NBA All-Star who debuted in the 1969-70 season or later, plus current players carrying a real scoring role. Lafayette Lever qualifies on the first route, with 2 All-Star selections — a repeat selection.
With 3 franchises on his record, the shared-team clue was a genuine filter rather than a giveaway. The debut arrow was the fastest way in: anyone opening with a modern player would have been sent back decades immediately. He never won a title, which quietly rules out a large share of the most-guessed names.
Play it yourself
This puzzle is still replayable — open Mystery Player #73 in the archive to play the round exactly as it was, or start today's puzzle. Archive rounds never affect your daily streak.