IN JERRY WEST VS. HOLLYWOOD, ROOT FOR TRUTH OVER DISHONESTY

Portrayed as an “out-of-control, intoxicated, rage-aholic’’ on an HBO show about the Lakers, the NBA legend threatens legal action over the creative liberties of producer Adam McKay, as well he should

     The first time I watched the series, I wondered if the writers were on drugs. The next few times I watched, the only remaining questions were which drugs and how many.

     Why would a roomful of creatives blessed with the most seductive of subjects — the Showtime Lakers, an orgy of money, sex, Hollywood, scandal and championships — feel compelled to embellish, conflate and lie when the material already was so damned real and raw?

     And what does it say about modern-day show business when the truth isn’t interesting enough to stand alone? It says the man behind the HBO project, producer Adam McKay, prefers to cash in with a grotesque form of “storytelling” rather than let delicious facts carry the narrative. The shame of “Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty’’ is that the sketches still manage to entertain because the era was riveting in and of itself.

     Too bad so much of the show is fake news. Hollywood hasn’t survived a recent period of American subterfuge, I’m afraid, choosing to borrow from it and extrapolate it. Let this be a reminder why documentaries should serve as definitive portrayals for the ages, with “The Last Dance’’ as the shining prototype, even if Michael Jordan tilted the truth his way. “Winning Time’’ is a raucous, twisted dramatization of the truth, carried out by well-known but naively exploited actors. The series callously blurs the lines between non-fiction and fiction, as the industry’s “creative liberties’’ make a sham of a topic that deserves to live on as classic sports cinema, not a firestorm.

     Until Tuesday night, McKay and his people weren’t concerned, after the network announced the show has been renewed for a second season. But what about Jerry West and the other misrepresented carcasses they left behind? Suddenly, HBO and McKay are facing a legal challenge from West, who is demanding a retraction and an apology for a portrayal that stretches the boundaries of veracity and stumbles into dishonesty.

     As the legendary figure silhouetted in the NBA’s logo, the Hall of Fame player and executive is a cornerstone in basketball history. But West will be doing as big a service for popular culture if he succeeds in taking down the production that has smeared him. He has been depicted in every episode as a madman who belongs in a straitjacket — or, as his attorneys wrote in a letter sent to the network and McKay, as obtained by ESPN, “Winning Time falsely and cruelly portrays Mr. West as an out-of-control, intoxicated rage-aholic (who) bears no resemblance to the real man. … (The portrayal) is fiction pretending to be fact — a deliberately false characterization that has caused great distress to Jerry and his family.’’

     The letter continues: “Jerry West was an integral part of the Lakers and NBA's success. It is a travesty that HBO has knowingly demeaned him for shock value and the pursuit of ratings. As an act of common decency, HBO and the producers owe Jerry a public apology and at the very least should retract their baseless and defamatory portrayal of him."

     If McKay and HBO executives have any dignity and sense of fairness, they will apologize to West on their hands and knees. They have wronged him in the pursuit of ratings that have increased each week, rising to 1.4 million viewers last Sunday.

     One by one, players linked to the Showtime Lakers have condemned the series for its falsehoods. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Magic Johnson are among them. “There is only one immutable sin in writing: Don’t Be Boring! Winning Time commits that sin over and over,” Abdul-Jabbar wrote in a Substack piece, pinpointing McKay as the primary culprit. “The characters are crude stick-figure representations that resemble real people, the way Lego Han Solo resembles Harrison Ford. Each character is reduced to a single bold trait, as if the writers were afraid anything more complex would tax the viewers’ comprehension.”

     In particular, Abdul-Jabbar defended West, played way over the top by Australian actor Jason Clarke. “It’s a shame the way they treat Jerry West, who has openly discussed his struggle with mental health, especially depression,” Abdul-Jabbar wrote. “Instead of exploring his issues with compassion as a way to better understand the man, they turn him into a Wile E. Coyote cartoon to be laughed at. He never broke golf clubs, he didn’t throw his trophy through the window. Sure, those actions make dramatic moments, but they reek of facile exploitation of the man rather than exploration of character.”

     Is this an inflection point in how Hollywood gins up the truth? It’s hardly a new approach to generate viewers, but as America evolves through complex times, life would be better if we trusted the entertainment options thrust in front of us. McKay’s projects mostly have been admired, but this one went awry in the opening moments, when West is shown trying to sabotage the drafting of Johnson because he favors Sidney Moncrief. If only that were true. Said the letter: “So instead of seeing the true Jerry West — a brilliant GM who was the architect of one of the great NBA dynasties — anyone who watched the show would be left with the false impression that West is incompetent, that he didn't want Magic Johnson. This is a fabrication.”

     The series is shaped by Jeff Pearlman’s book, “Showtime.” I can speak for the author’s tireless work ethic and attention to detail; in his research for an upcoming biography about Bo Jackson, he asked if I knew anything about Jackson’s penis size as someone who covered him when he played for the Chicago White Sox. West’s lawyers aren’t blaming Pearlman. “Contrary to the show, the book leaves readers with the true impression as a brilliant and thoughtful GM,’’ they wrote in the letter. “Your extreme departure from the book shows malice in your false portrayal.”

     To dumb-down the series makes no sense given the smart sports shows in HBO’s arsenal, hosted by Bryant Gumbel and Bob Costas, who must be gagging. Did McKay and his writers think the actual story wouldn’t connect with young people? Why not have more intellectual respect for the entirety of the audience? Bob Ryan, the ancient basketball writer, was among those railing on the portrayal of West. “I will need a barf bucket before it’s over,” Ryan said on Colin Cowherd’s podcast. “I think the only thing that’s true that they based it on was that it’s about the Lakers. About everything else is fantasy. … I don’t know what Jerry West ever did to Adam McKay to be portrayed in such an unflattering light, an unrealistic light, an embarrassing light, and that’s just for openers.”

     Ryan comes from a very old school where sportswriters carried on cozy relationships with franchise executives. He once blindsided me by calling himself “an F O’ J” — a friend of Chicago Bulls boss Jerry Krause, a target of mine when he orchestrated the breakup of the Jordan Dynasty. It wasn’t surprising to hear Ryan defend West, but the shock came when Pearlman responded with social-media crossfire.

     “Love @globebobryan, but a bit over these takes,” Pearlman tweeted. “A. It’s NOT a documentary; B. I interviewed 350 people for ‘Showtime,’ and ‘Winning Time’ creators were incredibly detailed, precise, honoring of the source material. … It’s not dishonoring anyone. A-n-y-o-n-e. Truth be told, the show is reminding people of Showtime’s greatness, and evoking rich memories of a glorious time in NBA history. Are the characters exact fits? No. They’re (wait for it) actors using (wait for it) scripts written by (wait for it) writers. And the writing is insanely sharp, smart, cool.

     “So, no, it’s not a documentary. Yes, leaps and flourishes are taken. But the show is f---ing brilliant, and I’m a VERY proud author.”

     These are not mere leaps and flourishes. Even if portrayals of Johnson and Lakers patriarch/playboy Jerry Buss aren’t offensive, too many moments smack of incredulity. Abdul-Jabbar says he never told a young boy to “f— off’’ while filming the movie “Airplane,’’ contrary to a scene in McKay’s script. “I never said ‘f— off’ to the child actor, nor have I ever said that to any child,” Kareem wrote. “I realize this was a shorthand way of showing my perceived aloofness during that time, even though I have often spoken about my intense, almost debilitating shyness. The filmmakers had access to that information, but truth and insight were not on their agenda. Shocking moments were.”

     Abdul-Jabbar’s piece was lengthy, excoriating McKay for not considering the collateral damage. “There is a victim here, it’s just that it’s not me. My charity, the Skyhook Foundation, provides week-long retreats for inner-city school children to study science while staying in the national forest,’’ he wrote. “For years, I have been visiting schools to promote STEM education. But when people see this show and come away with an impression that I’m verbally abusive to children, they are less likely to support my foundation. That means fewer kids will be able to partake in the program. So Adam McKay is giving those kids a great big ‘f— off!’ that lasts a lot longer than the easy laugh he got out of a dishonest joke.”

     As public figures, West and Abdul-Jabbar would have little chance of winning a defamation claim. But as heroes-for-life in southern California, it would be fascinating to see how a jury would rule.

     Standing behind Abdul Jabbar, in West’s defense, are statements in the letter from players Michael Cooper and Jamaal Wilkes and numerous front-office employees. Wrote Mitch Kupchak, West’s right-hand man: “During my time with the Lakers as a player and in the front office, Jerry was always professional, even-keeled and soft-spoken. He was always positive and encouraging with me. I also found Jerry to be honest and sincere. I never saw or heard Jerry lose his temper with anyone. I also never saw or heard Jerry go on an angry rant or tirade nor did I ever see or hear Jerry scream or yell at anyone. That was not his personality. Jerry is soft-spoken and does not like confrontation. He always keeps his composure and remains calm even when he has a disagreement with someone. Last, I've never heard or seen Jerry ever break or throw anything in anger.”

     All of which is emerging as an unimaginable showdown: The Lakers, a creation of the entertainment business, are turning on Hollywood because Hollywood turned on them.

     I could assume McKay and his writers are laughing their asses off about West’s legal threats, knowing this Sunday’s ratings only will spike amid the brouhaha. I can imagine they’re at a strip club, ordering the most expensive bottles, buying call girls.

     But those would be lies. How does it feel, boys?

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     Jay Mariotti, called “without question the most impacting Chicago sportswriter of the past quarter-century,’’ writes general sports columns for Substack while appearing on some of the 1,678,498 podcasts and shows in production today. He is an accomplished columnist, TV panelist and talk/podcast host. Living in Los Angeles, he gravitated by osmosis to film projects.