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Jerry West, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar capture command with HBO’s ‘Winning Time’

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Jerry West and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar were amongst feeble Los Angeles Lakers personnel who expressed their displeasure over their depictions within the HBO series “Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty.”

The series depicts the showtime expertise of the Lakers franchise. Jason Clarke performs West, Solomon Hughes performs Abdul-Jabbar, John C. Reilly performs then-team owner Dr. Jerry Buss and Quincy Isaiah performs Magic Johnson.

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This image released by HBO reveals Jason Clarke as Jerry West in a scene from “Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty.”
(HBO via AP)

West’s attorneys, in a assertion to ESPN, acknowledged he demanded a retraction over the depiction which allegedly describes him “as an out-of-defend watch over, intoxicated rage-aholic.” West seeks a retraction within two weeks of the letter to producer Adam McKay and HBO.

“The portrayal of NBA icon and L.A. Lakers epic Jerry West in ‘Winning Time’ is fiction pretending to be truth — a deliberately unfounded characterization that has precipitated mighty pain to Jerry and his household,” West’s lawyer Skip Miller acknowledged within the letter. “Opposite to the baseless portrayal within the HBO series, Jerry had nothing but delight in for and harmony with the Lakers organization, and in specific owner Dr. Jerry Buss, all the way thru an expertise in which he assembled a few of the supreme teams in NBA history.”

Jerry West #44 of the Los Angeles Lakers looks on walking up court docket against the Milwaukee Bucks all the way thru an NBA basketball recreation circa 1972 at the Milwaukee Enviornment in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
(Focus on Sport/Getty Images)

“Jerry West used to be an integral segment of the Lakers and NBA’s success. It’s a travesty that HBO has knowingly demeaned him for shock label and the pursuit of rankings. As an act of long-established decency, HBO and the producers owe Jerry a public apology and no lower than could possibly personal to gain their baseless and defamatory portrayal of him.”

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West used to be an govt for the Lakers from 1979 to 2000 after serving as a head coach from 1976 to 1979. He used to be a scout sooner than changing into the team’s general supervisor at the commence of the 1982-83 season. In the 1980s, the Lakers obtained 5 championships.

HBO didn’t straight away answer to Fox News Digital’s query for comment. The tag relies mostly off the Fresh York Times bestseller “Showtime: Magic, Kareem, Riley, and the Los Angeles Lakers Dynasty of the 1980s” by Jeff Pearlman.

In accordance to ESPN, the letter also included lend a hand for West from Abdul-Jabbar, Michael Cooper, Jamaal Wilkes and feeble Lakers workers equivalent to Mitch Kupchak who later turned into the team’s general supervisor.

This image released by HBO reveals Quincy Isaiah, portraying Magic Johnson, left, and Solomon Hughes, portraying Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, in a scene from the series “Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty.” 
(Warrick Web page/HBO via AP)

“Rather than exploring his points with compassion as a technique to greater imprint the man, they turn him into a Wile E. Coyote sketch to be laughed at,” Abdul-Jabbar says. “He in no way broke golf golf equipment, he didn’t throw his trophy thru the window. Particular, those actions salvage dramatic moments, but they reek of facile exploitation of the man in build aside of exploration of persona.”

Abdul-Jabbar added in a separate SubStack put up the characters are “coarse stick-resolve representations that resemble proper of us the way Lego Hans Solo resembles Harrison Ford. Each persona is diminished to a single courageous trait as if the writers were nervous anything more advanced would tax the viewers’ comprehension.”

Kupchak added he in no way noticed West “lose his temper with any individual.”

Johnson suggested TMZ Sports actions lend a hand in March he had no plans to scrutinize the series.

Jason Segel, who performs Lakers coach Paul Westhead on the tag, suggested The Hollywood Reporter it’s “no longer a docuseries” and believed the tag used to be “made with a ton of delight in.”

This image released by HBO reveals Brett Cullen, portraying Bill Sharman, left, and John C. Reilly, portraying Jerry Buss, standing, in a scene from the series “Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty.”
(Warrick Web page/HBO via AP)

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Pearlman also defended the series in a Twitter thread on Tuesday.

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