Winning Time Episode 8 True Story: What Really Happened & What Changed
Warning! SPOILERS for Winning Time season 1, episode 8.
HBO's Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty episode 8 revolves around the 1980 NBA All-Star Game, and here's what it gets right and wrong about the true story. Success is in the air in Los Angeles as the first season of HBO's 2022 original show begins to wrap up. The story of the Los Angeles Lakers' rise to dominance after Jerry Buss (John C. Reilly) buys the team and drafts Earvin «Magic» Johnson (Quincy Isaiah). While there were plenty of roadblocks after this, like Jerry West (Jason Clarke) quitting and replacement coach Jack McKinney (Tracy Letts) suffering a near-fatal bike accident, Winning Time episode 7 showed the team get a big break by beating the Boston Celtics. Winning Time episode 8 continues the storyline from this point on, as the Los Angeles Lakers begin to play some of their best basketball of the season.
At this point in the story, the team has climbed the NBA standings and have one of the best records in the league thanks to Paul Westhead (Jason Segel) and Pat Riley (Adrien Brody) figuring out the right way to coach the team. However, the NBA All-Star Break comes with a big surprise. Jack McKinney is ready to return to the bench and resume his role as the head coach of the Los Angeles Lakers. This creates plenty of friction, as Westhead doesn't want to go against McKinney's wishes, but Riley pushes him to request to remain the team's coach for the rest of the season.
Related: Winning Time Makes Jerry West A Bad Coach, But Was He?
As the coaching carousel of the Los Angeles Lakers' 1979 season continues, Magic Johnson deals with several challenges of his rookie season. This includes claims that he's now going to be a father and figuring out
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