Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty

My father acted a lot like West, and I can parse out the positives of a man of that age from that part of the world.

West walking away because he knew he didn’t have the vision to coach this group wasn’t an asshole move.

 

Oh, yeah. Loved them. NHL and NASL, as well. They aren't in very good condition anymore, but I still have three of the NHL books. At least one, maybe two, are from the Colorado Rockies six-year NHL run. NASL ... some cool names ... Colorado Caribous which became the Atlanta Chiefs, California Surf, Houston Hurricanes, New England Tea Men. Sorry for the rambling. Fond memories. Those "complete handbooks" were prized possessions during my childhood.

 

The Hawks once stayed in a hotel I was at. Lenny Wilkens emitted cool and class strolling into the coffee shop. Rider was bundled up like a winter storm was approaching even though it was probably 80 degrees. Shot the breeze with radioman Steve Holman for a bit.

I enjoyed following Wilkens' Hawks teams. My interest in the franchise dates back to the Hubie Brown-era when Ted Turner put road games on the bird.

 

I like the show. Even though I seriously wonder if Jerry West could set a precedent with a lawsuit about making up bad stuff about characters based on real people.

But its virtues for me include:

1) Performance of John C. Reilly
2) The actor playing Magic is pretty good too
3) In reenacts some cool moments of basketball history well enough
4) It's fun to watch.

 

I actually think they have leveled him out as the show has progressed too. The descriptions of him I've seen in how he actually is/was compared to inaccurately he's been portrayed are honestly deep down what I see of him as the season started and has moved on. Overall, he's seemed to want nothing more than the Lakers to succeed. I may be totally reading that wrong, but it is kind of what I have seen.

Yeah, some of that early stuff was over the top and the throwing of the trophy seems to be the biggest issue, but I bet there were some inside anger issues somewhere in his personality, especially with those stresses overall, that aren't far off from the truth.

 

I've enjoyed it quite a bit. Some of the acting is great. Capturing the time seems pretty good too.

I am too young to remember 1980 and definitely not the NBA of that year, so I really know nothing of what happened. But as I've watched I've looked up a lot of the actual history too to see what is real and what isn't (outside of how personalities are portrayed) and it has allowed me to place fact with fiction and kind of get into the period more.

 

It is so heavy handed in its portrayals and drama. Like a 2 x 4 to the head. Adam McKay for you.

 

No question about it. West addresses said issues in his co-authored book West by West: My Charmed, Tormented Life. I've mentioned this somewhere before, but I cannot recall a book in which the author is so brutally honest about himself. Wish I could remember the collaborator's name to properly credit him. EDIT: Jonathan Coleman.

 

I haven't read the book, so to those of you who have - how much of the over-the-top stuff are the producers taking from Pearlman and how much is them exaggerating for TV?

 

I love everything about it, except for whenever Magic is back in Lansing, as that bores me to tears. LOVE everything else as 1979-80 was the year I fell in love with the NBA.

Sure, I bitch about the factual inaccuracies but it's my weekly Sunday night fix.

 

I'm about 25 percent of the way through the book - just now getting to Westhead's firing in the 1980-81 season - but up to now, the book is MUCH more understated than the show. It may get more as I get deeper in the book, idk.

 

Pearlman's book about the Shaq-Kobe Lakers is excellent.