Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty is an American sports drama television series created by Max Borenstein and Jim Hecht for HBO, based on the book Showtime: Magic, Kareem, Riley, and the Los Angeles Lakers Dynasty of the 1980s by Jeff Pearlman.

The first season, comprising 10 episodes, chronicles the 1980s Showtime era of the Los Angeles Lakers basketball team (beginning in late 1979), featuring notable NBA stars Magic Johnson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

Multiple players and staff from that time claimed the show was false and interpreted certain storylines and personalities wrong, such as the nature of the relationship between Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Spencer Haywood, or the mischaracterization of Jerry West.

He pitched an adaptation of Pearlman's best-seller Showtime: Magic, Kareem, Riley and the Los Angeles Lakers Dynasty that would be similar to the TV show Friday Night Lights.

Upon learning of the decision via a phone call from Reilly, Ferrell was so infuriated that he ended his friendship and professional relationship with McKay.

[16] By March 2021, additional castings including Adrien Brody,[12] Sally Field,[22] Michael Chiklis,[26] Bo Burnham,[28] Jason Segel,[15] Sarah Ramos,[19] Brett Cullen, and Lola Kirke were announced.

[20] In May 2021, Rory Cochrane, Danny Burstein, Austin Aaron, Ta'Nika Gibson, Edwin Hodge, Terence Davis, and Ja'Quan Cole joined the cast.

The website's critics consensus reads, "Gleefully excessive in both form and function, Winning Time pairs a larger-than-life roster of characters with whiplash style to deliver an absolute slam dunk.

The website's critics consensus reads, "Trying to defend the title is hard, but Winning Time's sophomore season keeps pace as some of the best courtside seats to sports history that television can provide.

[74][75] On April 19, 2022, Jerry West demanded a retraction from HBO within two weeks for the "cruel" and "deliberately false" depiction of him as a temperamental, foul-mouthed executive prone to angry outbursts and mood swings.

However, the series and its depictions are based on extensive factual research and reliable sourcing, and HBO stands resolutely behind our talented creators and cast who have brought a dramatization of this epic chapter in basketball history to the screen.