The winning time era continues into a new decade, thanks to the historic rise of the Los Angeles Lakers.
The second season of HBO’s “Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty” kicks off with the Lakers winning the 1980 Finals. John C. Reilly returns as coach Jerry Buss, who led Earvin “Magic” Johnson (Quincy Isaiah), Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (Solomon Hughes), and the rest of the L.A. Lakers to glory.
In Season 2, “Winning Time” continues to explore the professional and personal lives of the 1980s Los Angeles Lakers. This season hones in on the period just after the Finals in 1980 through 1984, culminating in the first professional rematch of the era’s greatest stars: Magic Johnson and Larry Bird. The future of sports is purple and gold. New decade. New season.
Adrien Brody, Jason Clarke, Gaby Hoffmann, Jason Segel, and Hadley Robinson reprise their respective roles, with DeVaughn Nixon, Solomon Hughes, Tamera Tomakili, Brett Cullen, Stephen Adly Guirgis, Spencer Garrett, Molly Gordon, Joey Brooks, Delante Desouza, Jimel Atkins, Austin Aaron, McCabe Slye, Thomas Mann, Gillian Jacobs, Michael Chiklis, and Rob Morgan rounding out the ensemble cast.
“Winning Time” is executive produced by Adam McKay and Kevin Messick for Hyperobject Industries. Co-creator Max Borenstein serves as executive producer and showrunner with co-creator Jim Hecht. Scott Stephens, Rodney Barnes, Jason Shuman, and director Salli Richardson-Whitfield additionally executive produce.
Lead star Reilly stood by the controversial depiction of the Lakers’ era, saying in a Vulture interview last year, “The overall plot is based on historical fact, but we do fill in a lot of blanks. I knew it would be difficult for the people involved in this story to see their lives depicted in a semi-fictional way. But that doesn’t mean this story shouldn’t be told.”
IndieWire critic Ben Travers praised the first season in his review last year, writing, “For sports fans (especially Lakers devotees), the 10-episode first season’s unapologetically biased depiction of building a dynasty through near-catastrophic obsession should carry weight. For everyone else, it still puts on a show.”
“Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty” Season 2 premieres August 6 at 9 p.m. ET/PT on HBO and will be available to stream on Max. Check out the trailer below.
