Many were sad to hear that the HBO series ‘Winning Time’ would be cancelled after just two seasons. Despite some not being happy with how they were portrayed in the dramatic series following the ‘Showtime’ era of the Los Angeles Lakers in the 1980s, it was an entertaining show and one that Lakers owner Jeanie Buss watched regularly.
Buss has spoken about how the show has allowed her to fondly remember her father, the late, great Dr. Jerry Buss thanks to an outstanding job done by John C. Reilly. The portrayal of other characters has been praised as well such as Magic Johnson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, but one that stood out to almost everyone who watched the show was that of Larry Bird.
Those in charge of the show found the perfect actor to play the hated Boston Celtics star and really bring him to life. In an appearance on The Athletic NBA Show, Buss admitted that the story and his portrayal on the show made her appreciate Bird more:
“And the Larry Bird character, I thought that was great. It made me appreciate Larry Bird so much. I mean we hated him so much in L.A it’s just hard to even think about. And just to see his backstory and what happened with him and the game, what a special athlete he was, and a trash-talker.”
With how fierce the rivalry was during that time, it makes sense that Buss would have nothing but pure hatred towards anyone involved with the Celtics, let alone the face of the franchise in Bird. But being years removed from that time and seeing more of a backstory allows her to appreciate where he came from and his journey.
While Lakers fans undoubtedly still have a ton of hatred for Bird, there is also a level of respect not only for his skill as a player, but his willingness and ability to talk trash and back it up. Bird really was that good, but Buss or nor anyone involved with the Lakers was going to admit that in the moment.
It is a shame that this show won’t continue on and see the Lakers come back and take down Bird and the Celtics in the ensuing years. And even though it won’t be seen on the show, everyone knows the reality of Magic and the Lakers’ success against Bird in the 1980s.
Jeanie Buss wants Lakers to get 18th NBA Championship before Celtics
When Jeanie Buss’ father Dr. Jerry Buss bought the Lakers, his goal was to take them to the top of the NBA. Since that time the Lakers have tied the hated Boston Celtics with 17 NBA Championship overall and she badly wants to beat Boston to No. 18.
Jeanie spoke on this recently, noting how it was her father’s goal to get the Lakers at the level of the Celtics, who were the class of the NBA at that time. If the two franchises were to meet in the NBA Finals for that 18th championship, it would be a clash for the ages.
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