Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty
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Before their final game before the All-Star break, spirits are soaring in the first-place Lakers locker room.
A big part of that success is that interim coach Paul Westhead is playing power forward Spencer Haywood again.
But unbeknownst to Westhead, Haywood is playing through a serious injury that assistant coach Pat Riley easily spots.
McKinney takes Westhead and Riley back to his office to tell them hes ignoring the doctors orders to retire.
And the first order of business: finding out whose dumb idea it was to bench Spencer Haywood.
As Westhead fumbles with an excuse, Riley falls on the grenade and says it was his fault.
The notion doesnt sit well with McKinney, who physically recoils.
The only thing is, shes keeping it a secret from her son Dr. Jerry Buss.
Dr. J, whose flashy play laid the groundwork for Magic.
Before theyre introduced, Cookie surprises Magic by letting him know she just landed a job offer in Detroit.
A confused Haywood tells McKinney that Westhead and Riley wanted him to focus on defense.
Riley wants Westhead to grow a pair and get McKinney to stop undermining both of them.
Also watching the All-Star Game is the Buss family, drunk off champagne and full of KFC.
Like Westhead, Jeanies insides are all torn up from the secret shes hiding.
That is, until she pukes everything up into a KFC bucket after imaging her father in an orgy.
The next morning, a hungover Jerry apologizes to Lucia for not being able to drive her home.
Later, Jerry drops Lucia off at her modest house.
As the Lakers get ready for their post-All-Star break swing, McKinney joins the team on their road trip.
While Westhead retreats to the bathroom yet again, McKinney catches Riley giving a no-holds-barred TV interview.
Before the game, Westhead flounders once more when he tries to give Riley the bad news.
But this time, Westhead doesnt make it to the bathroom.
Then he sucker-punches Westhead by admitting he hired him as his assistant coach because he knew Westheaddidnthave that feeling.
Happy is a distraction, he tells Magic.
And nobody will understand that.
Not your family, not your fucking teammates, not your woman, nobody.
If happiness is a distraction, why dont championship rings weigh down his hands?
Its a muddled ending to a show limping towards its final episodes like an overplayed Spencer Haywood.
in case that wasnt clear.
Todays NBA head coaches typically have six assistant coaches with them on the sideline.
But back in the 1979-1980 season, there really was just room for one assistant.
So it was nice to hear a shout-out to local commercial legendCal Worthington and his Dog Spotin this episode.
Julius Ervingsrock-the-baby dunkover Magic Johnson is one of the most iconic dunks of all time.
Only it didnt happen to Magic as its portrayed onWinning Time.
It was Michael Cooper who got dunked on.
Looking back, Cooper called it the greatest dunk of all time.
