HBO
Winning time: The rise of the Lakers dynasty is finished.
Following the second season finale on Sunday, creator Max Borenstein confirmed the X news.
“This is not the ending we had in mind,” he wrote. “But nothing but gratitude and love.”
The second season of Winning time returned to HBO on August 6 with 629,000 total viewers across Max and linear broadcasts. This was a disgrace, considering the 901,000 people who watched the season 1 debut in March 2022. In May of that year, season 1 managed to garner 1.6 million same-day viewers for the final. (However, it may be worth nothing that Season 1 also most likely benefited from March Madness buzz, when basketball is already top of mind for audiences.)
The HBO series is based on the book by Jeff Pearlman, Showtime: Magic, Kareem, Riley and the Los Angeles Lakers dynasty of the 1980s. The second series of the series focused on the period just after the 1980 NBA Finals through 1984, culminating in the first professional rematch of the era’s biggest stars: Magic (Quincy Isaiah) and Boston’s Larry Bird Celtics (Sean Patrick Small).
Last month, Pearlman went on X to implore people to check out the second season. “I tell you, the future of ‘Winning Time’ hangs in the balance,” Pearlman tweeted. “We need viewers. Strikes are paralyzing. Please help us spread the word. Season 2 is incredible. But…HBO is big on #s,” he wrote.
Adrien Brody, John C. Reilly, Michael Chiklis) and Jason Segel star in Winning timealongside Jason Clarke, Gaby Hoffmann, Hadley Robinson, DeVaughn Nixon, Solomon Hughes, Tamera Tomakili, Brett Cullen, Stephen Adly Guirgis, Spencer Garrett, Molly Gordon, Joey Brooks, Delante Desouza, Jimel Atkins, Austin Aaron, McCabe Slye, Thomas Mann, Gillian Jacobs and Rob Morgan.
Executive producers are writers/co-creators Borenstein and Jim Hecht, Adam McKay, Kevin Messick, Scott Stephens, Rodney Barnes, director Salli Richardson-Whitfield and Jason Shuman.
