(CNN)The equivalent of a miss when it should be a simple layup, Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty stumbles on the road to greatness, subverting the must-have basketball theme with an inconsistent, at times absurd, tone . Though the ’80s-style excess is clearly responsible for much of the sizzling, this exercise feels like a no-look pass that’s out of bounds.
Produced by Adam McKay of Don’t Look Up (who also directed the first episode) and based on Jeff Pearlman’s book about the period, the 10-episode series focuses on the first season, which sees new owner Jerry Buss (John C. Reilly) drafted rookie phenom Earvin “Magic” Johnson (outstanding newcomer Quincy Isaiah) and won the first of five NBA titles in a decade.
In addition to their passion for basketball, the late Buss and Johnson (who notably opposed the project) shared a playboy lifestyle while transforming the forum where the Lakers played their games into the hottest ticket in town.
What became known as the “Showtime” Lakers (a title left unused by HBO for obvious reasons) featured a larger-than-life collection of personalities and a series of soap opera-worthy twists, such as coach Jerry West (Jason Clarke) quitting but still hanging around; and new coach Jack McKinney (Tracy Letts), who suffers a devastating accident that leaves assistant Paul Westhead (Jason Segel) overwhelmed.
Still, “Winning Time” feels too cute, especially in the beginning when characters keep breaking the fourth wall to chat directly to the audience, and everyone but Buss and Magic seem to be kind of jerks.
To be fair, the series settles down a bit after that (eight of the 10 episodes were previewed) and focuses on fleshing out individual players, from Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (Solomon Hughes, just 6’11”) to Buss ‘ Daughter Jeanie (Hadley Robinson), who is treated vilely by her line managers for being the owner’s child.
There are some memorable moments scattered along the way, like Buss’ run-in with Boston Celtics owner Red Auerbach (Michael Chiklis), who views the real estate mogul as a dilettant and dismisses him as a threat to the Celtics’ aspirations. Reilly also makes the most of Buss’ extravagance, pretending almost drunk while hanging on the edge of a financial cliff and assuring anyone who asks, “Let me worry about the money.”
For those wondering, most of the actors are around six inches shorter than their real-life counterparts, but the basketball sequences — and the clever washed-out tones used in filming the entire production — work pretty well. Isaiah captures Johnson’s charisma and infectious enthusiasm, but also his competitive streak, especially given the attention being drawn to his rookie superstar Larry Bird (Sean Patrick Small), the league’s “great white hope.”
But despite its all-star cast, which includes Sally Field as Buss’ mother and Adrien Brody as future coach Pat Riley, “Winning Time” plays too fast and loose — it approaches its material with irreverence, from animation snippets to cheeky to -screen chyrons, in a way that’s regularly off-putting. What should be catnip to those who’ve watched the ESPN docuseries The Last Dance falls short of that mark and ends up in a creative no-man’s-land.
Buss emerges as a visionary, someone who recognized the potential of the NBA and Johnson’s appeal not only to win titles, but also to increase the fortunes of the entire league thanks to the rivalry with the Celtics.
It’s a high-stakes, fact-based story that requires little embellishment, one that could do for sport what “Succession” does for the media.
However, this blue-chip list only makes “Winning Time’s” shortcomings more glaring. While the Lakers have risen to the occasion, the series falls short of its potential when it comes to conjuring premium TV magic.
Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty premieres March 6 at 9 p.m. ET on HBO, which, like CNN, is a unit of WarnerMedia.
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