“Winning Time” cruelly cancelled before they get to the Pistons

Fans of the Detroit Pistons who were hoping to see who might play Isiah Thomas, Dennis Rodman or Vinnie Johnson on a TV show are going to have to wait.

Reports indicate that “Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty” will be cancelled after the second season.

This was bad news for those of use who were enjoying the show, which chronicles Jerry Buss’ purchase of the Los Angeles Lakers, the drafting of Magic Johnson and their subsequent success.

The show was probably doomed from the start because it’s tacitly about sports, which shrunk the demographic of potential viewers.

But it is well written and acted, even if some of the former Lakers didn’t like (or agree with) their portrayals. But as a fictional show (who goes into a drama expecting verbatim fact?) it was very entertaining, especially for those of us who started watching the NBA around that time.

And as a fan of the Detroit Pistons, it ended a few years too soon.

“Winning Time” cruelly cancelled before they get to the Pistons

“Winning Time” uses an ensemble cast and has a lot of storylines going at the same time, including Magic Johnson’s sketchy love life, Kareem Abdul Jabbar’s battles with his public persona and the young Jeanie Buss’ part in crafting the Lakers we know today, just to name a few.

From a basketball perspective, the relationship between Magic Johnson and Larry Bird was at the forefront, which made for some compelling basketball scenes (The F*** Boston scene was particularly great) and interesting insight into their rivalry.

But I was hoping the show would continue into the late 80’s, when the Detroit Pistons emerged as Magic’s new rival.

Of course, it wasn’t all good for the Pistons, who were beaten by the Lakers the year before finally breaking through for two titles in a series that contained the “Phantom Foul” and one of the most controversial endings in NBA Finals history, when Lakers’ fans and camera crews ran onto the floor with time on the clock during the crucial play of game 7, not that I am still bitter or anything.

Detroit got their revenge the very next year, sweeping the aging Lakers and effectively ending that particular era of LA dominance.

Unfortunately, won’t get to see any of that play out in “Winning Time,” which was cancelled before they even got to the best part.

So we will be robbed of casting decisions for the Pistons and getting to see how they would be portrayed (probably as evil villains) in a show about the Lakers.

Hopefully, someone else will pick up the show, as it was much better than its ratings and deserved a chance to tell the full story.