Winning Time Episode 5 True Story: What Really Happened & What Changed

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HBO's Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty episode 5 puts the focus on Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as the Los Angeles Lakers' season begins, and here's what it gets right and wrong about the true story. As the sports drama series reaches the halfway point of season 1, the spotlight is starting to grow beyond Jerry Buss (John C. Reilly), Earvin 'Magic' Johnson (Quincy Isaiah), and Jerry West (Jason Clarke). This comes after Winning Time episode 4 helped introduce Jack McKinney (Tracy Letts) as the Los Angeles Lakers began training camp.

Winning Time episode 5 pushes the story forward to the start of the 1979 NBA season as the focus turns to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (Solomon Hughes) and a greater exploration of his religion, leadership style, and views on being a Black professional athlete. It is through this lens that the power struggle between Kareem and Magic Johnson/Jack McKinney for the identity of the team takes shape. The star Lakers big man balks at McKinney's up-tempo style and the energetic performative personality of the team's talented rookie. Kareem's attitude begins to change after he comes to certain realizations about his life and current relationship with Islam's god, Allah.

Related: Winning Time: Why The NBA Was So Unpopular In The 1970s

At the same time that Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and the Lakers get ready for their first on-court performance, Jerry West helps orchestrate a trade for Spencer Haywood (Wood Harris), who is respected by Kareem but comes with his own baggage. Meanwhile, Jerry Buss is worried about the look of his NBA franchise. He continues to shell out money to make improvements, including pushing for sexier dancers to be the first Laker Girls. Winning Time episode 5 does all of this as it builds