The team is in a jam in the latest Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty. Their coach, Jack McKinney, had a serious biking accident and his fate is up in the air. That leaves Paul Westhead in charge; a man who couldn’t even hack it in the college game.
Jason Segel’s Westhead is an eccentric bogged down by self-doubt. A man who quotes Shakespeare at press conferences and pre-game talks. Not exactly inspiring material. He’s not your typical sports guy and his academic background further alienates him from others. It’s surprising to think this is the person who leads the team to the glory land at the end of the season.
Despite his quirkiness, he’s as loyal and compassionate as they come staying by his mentor and best friend’s side as much as he can. The series also begins developing Westhead’s relationship with Pat Riley, who would become the new assistant, giving them candid moments together. In those scenes you can see how much these versions contrast each other.
Elsewhere on Winning Time, Magic is pursuing a shoe endorsement deal, which he would later describe as one of his biggest mistakes as the episode firmly breaks down. That process brings to light a greater conflict surrounding the player: who can he trust now he that he’s famous. It’s interesting because his story is nothing new. A wide-eyed small-town guy goes to the bright lights and flash of the big city. People are looking to take advantage of him, even those who came up with him. But the undeniable charisma of both the real person and actor makes it so much more fascinating.
Women are his weakness and his girl, Cindy Day, begins making decisions for him. Bringing in her dad as a potential agent, overcompensating with a get-well bouquet, it’s all cramping the player’s style. Who is even colder is Dr. Thomas Day. He sees the potential fortune coming his way and does all of Magic’s less desirable jobs such as turning down the other shoe offers and the break up with his own daughter. However, there is an exploration of the duality of Johnson and how he tries to remain Earvin while the world wants him to be Magic.
This wouldn’t be an episode of Winning Time if they didn’t cover Dr. Jerry Buss’ questionable business tactics. There’s another financial situation that could risk him losing his team and once again, with a lot of flair and smooth talk, he is able to kick the can down the road for another day. I don’t know how many more of these crises there will be but at least it’s building the big bet Buss placed on himself to succeed.
The money troubles also highlight the deteriorating mental fitness of Buss’ mom, Jessie. She’s losing her memory and her lapses could have been damaging. Still, Buss will always be a momma’s boy and his deferential soliloquy reinforces that. Plus, all the hobnobbing brings another component to what made Showtime so special – the celebrities. There’s a quick Jack Nicholson appearance and Richard Pryor tries to provide some helpful advice to Magic as his popularity is about to blow up.
One aspect of this episode of Winning Time that didn’t work as well are the random scenes of McKinney breaking down the scouting report and deciphering strategies for the upcoming games. They seem misplaced and their purpose is unclear. Do they represent the inner activity of the coach as he recovers and indicate times he’s actually thinking? Yet, when McKinney does awaken the coaching scenes skew the progression of time as there’s a significant jump into the future.
“Memento Mori” presents familiar tropes (e.g., eccentric socially awkward genius and small-town boy in the big city) but with stellar performances that elevate the material.
New episodes of Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty air Sunday nights on HBO.
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