Showtime: Magic, Kareem, Riley, and the Los Angeles Lakers Dynasty ofthe 1980s

by Pearlman, Jeff

  105Abdul-Jabbar was accidentally poked in the right eye Sam Goldaper, “Accidents Produce Odd-Looking Pair,” New York Times, October 14, 1980.

  106In the final four and a half minutes of the game Scott Ostler, “Lakers’ Tunnel Vision Sets Them Up for a Fall,” Los Angeles Times, November 13, 1980.

  106Six days later, in the second quarter of a game against the visiting Kings Scott Ostler, “Magic’s Knee Goes Down for Third Time,” Los Angeles Times, November 19, 1980.

  108On March 4, 1975, Duquesne faced Cincinnati Ellis Cannon, “Where Are They Now? Norm Nixon,” Pittsburgh Sports Report, November 1998.

  108“I got drafted by the pros and they called me” Richard Levin, stringer file to Sports Illustrated, February 1, 1978.

  109During another contest, this one against the Nuggets, Nixon was trapped Scott Ostler and Steve Springer, Winnin’ Times, p. 198.

  110“These are rough times,” Westhead said Ibid., p. 132.

  111Westhead’s stated reasoning—“We need to create a better balance of energy” Scott Ostler, “Westhead Tries a Shakeup,” Los Angeles Times, December 8, 1980.

  111“Enough bad vibes have been vibrating to arouse” Scott Ostler, “Lakers Are Finding Out Why NBA Champs Don’t Repeat,” Los Angeles Times, December 19, 1980.

  111“If [Norm Nixon] doesn’t stop talking” Scott Ostler and Steve Springer, Winnin’ Times, p. 132.

  111–112“I thought [my career] was always going to be good things” Malcolm Moran, “With Johnson Out, Lakers Are Having the Tables Turned,” New York Times, January 12, 1981.

  112His life became an ode to mind-numbing routine Earvin Johnson with William Novak, My Life, p. 147.

  112“It’s not my preference” Alan Greenberg, “Tonight, the Lakers Put a Little Magic Back in Their Lives,” Los Angeles Times, February 27, 1981.

  115Two hours before tip-off, a gaggle of reporters and photographers lingered Alan Greenberg, “Magic’s Back—Lakers Glad They’ve Got Him,” Los Angeles Times, February 28, 1981.

  116A sellout crowd of 17,505 stood Malcolm Moran, “Magic Weaves Laker Victory,” New York Times, March 1, 1981.

  116He smiled, nodded and spread his arms John Papanek, “And Now for My Reappearing Act,” Sports Illustrated, March 9, 1981.

  116Before the game, Westhead pulled Johnson aside Earvin Johnson with William Novak, My Life, p. 149.

  117Los Angeles concluded the regular season with a 148–146 Mike Littwin, “A 294-Point Game Gets the Lakers Tuned for Rockets,” Los Angeles Times, March 30, 1981.

  118“I thought Magic would have to come in” Mike Littwin, “The Lakers’ Other Guard,” Los Angeles Times, March 31, 1981.

  120“We didn’t play as hard as they did” Mike Littwin, “Who Can Stop Malone and Start the Lakers?,” Los Angeles Times, April 3, 1981.

  121Before the game, Johnson admitted the franchise Mike Littwin, “Johnson Feels Some Lakers Are Resentful,” Los Angeles Times, April 4, 1981.

  121“I’m not trying to come in here and do all this with the publicity” Scott Ostler and Steve Springer, Winnin’ Times, p. 136.

  121“The best way to put it,” he said, “is that it was like my whole being just shifted” Bill Dwyre, “Buss Still Delighted by His Expensive and Unpredictable Toys,” Los Angeles Times, October 31, 1981.

  122Buss had estimated that Thom Greer, “Kings’ Grunfeld: It’s Survival by Determination,” New York Daily News, April 12, 1981.

  CHAPTER 7

  126“McGee was just too good to pass up” Mike Littwin, “Lakers Find the Good Points,” Los Angeles Times, June 10, 1981.

  127He ate the majority of his meals at Denny’s and IHOP Bruce Newman, “Rich, but Not Spoiled,” Sports Illustrated, November 23, 1981.

  127Not only was the contract too big Mike Littwin, “Kupchak Gets an Offer; Lakers May Be Team,” Los Angeles Times, June 20, 1981.

  127“No,” said Jerry Colangelo Mike Littwin, “Lakers Are Set to Bite a $5.6-Million Bullet,” Los Angeles Times, July 28, 1981.

  127“I don’t think eight hundred thousand dollars for a second-stringer” Bruce Newman, “Rich, but Not Spoiled,” Sports Illustrated, November 23, 1981.

  127“Am I missing something?” Richard Hoffer, “The Mitch Kupchak Caper, Cont’d,” Los Angeles Times, August 7, 1981.

  128“Is Westhead a real genius?” Scott Ostler and Steve Springer, Winnin’ Times, p. 150.

  128“I don’t know how Magic can be totally loved” Scott Ostler, “Money Talks,” Los Angeles Times, September 9, 1981.

  128“They were giving him all this money” Bruce Newman, “Magic Faces the Music,” Sports Illustrated, May 13, 1985.

  129“In many ways, a basketball team is like a family” Mark Heisler, “Abdul-Jabbar Decides L.A.’s Really the Place,” Los Angeles Times, August 4, 1981.

  129Nixon ran into Johnson in a hallway at the Ocotillo Lodge Larry Bird and Earvin Johnson with Jackie MacMullan, When the Game Was Ours, p. 87.

  130Johnson, still recovering from the knee injury Scott Ostler and Steve Springer, Winnin’ Times, p. 153.

  131“Michael always had a mental toughness” Michael Cooper with Theodore J. Lynn Jr., No Slack, p. 2.

  133The previous season, six black players quit Alfred Romo, “A Perfect Storm: The 1977–78 New Mexico Lobos,” www.wolf-bytes.com/index_files/Calendar/AR00.htm.

  134“I’ll be back,” he whispered Michael J. Cooper with Theodore J. Lynn Jr., No Slack, p. 15.

  135“Westhead equipped the team with about 50” Scott Ostler, “Back to the Classroom with Paul Westhead,” Los Angeles Times, November 16, 1981.

  135“There will be more movement from everyone and less of Magic Johnson” Randy Harvey, “Lakers Take Up Where They Left Off—With Rockets,” Los Angeles Times, October 30, 1981.

  136“Paul thought half-court basketball controlled the game” Roland Lazenby, The Show, p. 211.

  136“Once we got down the court” Scott Ostler and Steve Springer, Winnin’ Times, p. 151.

  136Watching from his skybox, Buss was apoplectic Scott Ostler and Steve Springer, Winnin’ Times, pp. 154–155.

  138On the night of November 10, 1981, the Lakers fell Randy Harvey, “San Antonio’s Subs Torpedo L.A., 128–102,” Los Angeles Times, November 11, 1982.

  139“Sometimes,” he told the media, “I just have to sit in the sunshine and think” Randy Harvey, “Magic’s Bombshell: He Wants to Be Traded,” Los Angeles Times, November 19, 1981.

  141“Earvin!” Westhead said. “Shut up! Get your ass in this huddle” Earvin Johnson with William Novak, My Life, p. 155.

  143The first reporter to reach Johnson “Obituary: Dave Blackwell,” Deseret News, April 4, 2005.

  144Wilkes, the quiet veteran Roy S. Johnson, “Lakers Are Gearing Up to Play ‘Showtime’ Basketball,” New York Times, November 22, 1981.

  CHAPTER 8

  150“Things have really changed” Scott Ostler and Steve Springer, Winnin’ Times, p. 167.

  151The session could have doubled as a Saturday Night Live skit Bill Dwyre, “It Was as Complicated as Westhead’s Offense,” Los Angeles Times, November 20, 1981.

  153“I’m just happy to be here in L.A.” Randy Harvey, “Buss Makes Westhead Disappear; It’s Magic,” Los Angeles Times, November 20, 1981.

  154“If the perception around the country today” Randy Harvey, “In Laker Firing, Only Timing Was Wrong,” Los Angeles Times, November 23, 1981.

  156“What you must do is ride it out” Roland Lazenby, The Show, p. 214.

  157“Yeah, I’m happy—and so are him and him and him” Anthony Cotton, “Don’t Blame Me, I Just Want to Have Fun,” Sports Illustrated, November 30, 1981.

  157“That’s the kind of basketball I like to watch” Randy Ha
rvey, “Lakers Go Back to Run-and-Shoot; It Works,” Los Angeles Times, November 21, 1981.

  158“Dignity, respect, pride” Kenny Moore, “Not Just a Pretty Face,” Sports Illustrated, October 28, 1985.

  158“In twenty-two years he gets a cup of coffee” Mark Kriegel, “Escape from New York,” Esquire, December 1995.

  158“We were always in hotels” Kenny Moore, “Not Just a Pretty Face,” Sports Illustrated, October 28, 1985.

  159“I could sense his disappointment” Mark Heisler, The Lives of Riley, p. 9.

  159“A guy chased me home with a butcher’s knife” Randy Harvey, “Living the Life of Riley Isn’t All That Easy,” Los Angeles Times, April 26, 1982.

  159“My dad came down,” he said Mark Heisler, The Lives of Riley, pp. 11–12.

  160“One day he’d go off on attitude” Kenny Moore, “Not Just a Pretty Face,” Sports Illustrated, October 28, 1985.

  160Riley averaged 28 points per game Mark Heisler, The Lives of Riley, pp. 16–17.

  160“I could throw the hell out of the ball” Austin Wet, stringer file to Sports Illustrated, December 17, 1973.

  160“I used to have a hard time with coaches” Kenny Moore, “Not Just a Pretty Face,” Sports Illustrated, October 28, 1985.

  161Louie Dampier, a fellow freshman Mark Heisler, The Lives of Riley, p. 17.

  161“He was [General Norman] Schwartzkopf” Ibid., p. 18.

  161Before opening the season against Hardin-Simmons Jon Scott, “Season Review—1966 Kentucky Wildcats,” www.bigblue history.net/bb/Statistics/roster1965-66.html.

  162“You could feel the intensity on the court” Mark Heisler, The Lives of Riley, p. 21.

  163“[Rockets coach] Jack McMahon drafted me first” Kenny Moore, “Not Just a Pretty Face,” Sports Illustrated, October 28, 1985.

  163“I’ll never forget my first day in training camp” Mark Heisler, The Lives of Riley, p. 25.

  164“I was always afraid of losing my position” Kenny Moore, “Not Just a Pretty Face,” Sports Illustrated, October 28, 1985.

  164As a disposable part on some of the greatest clubs West by West, Jerry West and Jonathan Coleman, p. 129.

  164In 1971, when Bill Sharman replaced Kenny Moore, “Not Just a Pretty Face,” Sports Illustrated, October 28, 1985.

  164“When I finally realized that I couldn’t” Mark Heisler, The Lives of Riley, p. 31.

  166On the morning of December 2 Randy Harvey, “Lakers Decide Riley Is Coach—With No Strings,” Los Angeles Times, December 3, 1981.

  166They were outscoring opponents by an average Randy Harvey, “Lakers Are Scoring More and Enjoying It More,” Los Angeles Times, December 11, 1981.

  169Multiple newspaper headline writers Randy Harvey, “Nets’ Owners Don’t Let Lakers Deal for McAdoo,” Los Angeles Times, December 24, 1981.

  CHAPTER 9

  171During the early years of Showtime Catherine Cloutier, “Looking Back: Real Estate in Fox Hills,” Culver City Patch, December 11, 2010.

  173“I was used to structured ball” Harvey Araton, “Newest Knick’s in Dreamland,” New York Post, February 1, 1981.

  173“I put a lot more emphasis on making the club than I should have” Roy S. Johnson, “Man at Work: Mildest Laker Makes Himself Known,” New York Times, January 10, 1983.

  174“One day I looked around and I said” Ibid.

  176“Rambis has the least physical ability” Scott Ostler and Steve Springer, Winnin’ Times, p. 187.

  177“That’s my job” Randy Harvey, “Living the Life of Riley Isn’t All That Easy,” Los Angeles Times, April 26, 1982.

  178“I call him a philosopher” Ibid.

  178“Riley’s not getting near the credit” Bruce Newman, “They’re Not Just Good, They’re Perfect,” Sports Illustrated, May 24, 1982.

  179“L.A. can’t win with a Kurt Rambis” Anthony Cotton, “Still Kareem of the Crop,” Sports Illustrated, April 10, 1982.

  179“The players really remember” Randy Harvey, “Lakers Sweep Away Their Nightmare of ’81,” Los Angeles Times, May 3, 1982.

  182In a scene that could take place only in Los Angeles Chris Cobbs and Randy Harvey, “Proposal at Pickfair,” Los Angeles Times, May 14, 1982.

  183A couple of hours before the Game 3 tip-off, Sampson . . . issued a recorded statement Chris Cobbs and Randy Harvey, “Sampson Says He’ll Stay,” Los Angeles Times, May 15, 1982.

  184“He was a picture of health” John Zant, “Honoring Jamaal Wilkes,” Santa Barbara Independent, September 12, 2012.

  185“I was looking forward to the year” Randy Harvey, “Season of Burdens Finally Turns Right for Lakers’ Wilkes,” Sporting News, May 17, 1982.

  185“His life was depressing” Randy Harvey, “Lakers Stood behind Wilkes, Now He’s Repaying the Favor,” Los Angeles Times, May 2, 1982.

  186“To me,” Westhead once said, “his shot is like snow falling softly” Anthony Cotton, “Like Snow on a Bamboo Leaf,” Sports Illustrated, February 9, 1981.

  186“I planned to stay in Ventura for my senior year” John Zant, “Super Shot,” Santa Barbara Independent, March 23, 2011.

  187“A long time ago I saw what winning meant” Anthony Cotton, “Like Snow on a Bamboo Leaf,” Sports Illustrated, February 9, 1981.

  187“He was straightforward” Jack Tobin, stringer file to Sports Illustrated, January 16, 1973.

  187“There he is!” a girl shouted Dwight Chapin, “Keith Wilkes: An Authentic Campus Hero,” Los Angeles Times, 1974.

  187“If Keith Wilkes could have his way” Cliff Gewecke, “UCLA’s Smooth-as-Silk Wilkes,” Christian Science Monitor, December 11, 1973.

  188“Keith was fantastic” Jack Tobin, stringer file to Sports Illustrated, May 30, 1975.

  188“It’s about the worst looking shot” Sam Goldaper, “Wilkes Wins Rookie Poll in N.B.A.,” New York Times, April 22, 1975.

  188Shortly after signing with the Warriors Drew Cryer, “Wilkes,” Associated Press, July 25, 1975.

  190“Let me just say this” Alan Greenberg, “Fitch Figures Lakers Got Lucky When Celtics Lost,” Los Angeles Times, May 24, 1982.

  190–91“Two years ago he couldn’t have made” Scott Ostler, “A Star Is Born,” Los Angeles Times, May 25, 1982.

  191“Wilkes looked as if he needed more than just an oilcan” Mike Littwin, “Wilkes Wakes Up Lakers,” Los Angeles Times, May 28, 1982.

  191“It’s something we think about” Mike Littwin, “Lakers Confess They’re Thinking Clean Sweep,” Los Angeles Times, May 29, 1982.

  191“In our practices the last few days, we taught ourselves” Dave Anderson, “The Doctor Soars Again,” New York Times, May 31, 1982.

  CHAPTER 10

  201Behind the bar, Donna Mark Lacey, “The Ultimate Sports Bar,” Los Angeles Times, February 23, 1992.

  206On December 29, in a game against Golden State Bruce Newman, “At the Head of His Class,” Sports Illustrated, February 21, 1983.

  206“They weren’t doing anything different” Randy Harvey, “Celtics Use Lakers and Television to Get a Point Across,” Los Angeles Times, January 31, 1983.

  207What crushed him, however John Papanek, “A Lot of Hurt,” Sports Illustrated, October 19, 1987.

  207“My record collection” Norman O. Unger, “Veteran Cage Star Starts Life Anew after Fire and Breakup,” Jet magazine, May 1986.

  207“The beautiful pieces of glass” Kareem Abdul-Jabbar with Peter Knobler, Giant Steps, p. 319.

  208Combining pragmatism and paranoia Scott Ostler and Steve Springer, Winnin’ Times, pp. 195–197.

  212During Game 3, a microphone caught Jim Lynam Randy Harvey, “Riley Fuming over Portland’s Tactics,” Los Angeles Times, May 3, 1983.

  213In five head-to-
head matchups Randy Harvey, “Lakers Run Out of Time for Healing,” Los Angeles Times, May 8, 1983.

  213“We’re going to have to reevaluate our plans” Steve Hershey, “Gilmore Falters in Duel with Kareem,” Sporting News, May 16, 1983.

  213“Kareem,” Riley said, “has brought” Mike Littwin, “Gilmore Is Doing Job Spurs Hired Him to Do,” Los Angeles Times, May 12, 1983.

  214That feeling dated back to January 31, 1982 Roy S. Johnson, “Malone’s Dominance Grows,” New York Times, February 19, 1982.

  214In 1974, Malone seamlessly jumped straight from Steve Hershey, “Malone’s Windfall,” Washington Post, September 29, 1982.

  215“I goes to the rack” Randy Harvey, “Kareem of the Crop,” Los Angeles Times, May 30, 1983.

  215“If I owned a farm” Sam McManis, “76ers Are Team with a Mission,” Los Angeles Times, May 22, 1983.

  215In what Sports Illustrated called Bruce Newman, “Better by Leaps and Bounds,” Sports Illustrated, June 6, 1983.

  216“We toyed with people” Bruce Newman, “Thou Shalt Rejoice, Said Moses,” Sports Illustrated, June 13, 1983.

  CHAPTER 11

  217Despite a blood test that showed a 98.95 percent “Lakers’ Nixon Plans Appeal in Paternity Suit,” Los Angeles Times, June 16, 1983.

  218“Worthy has enough hardware” Richard Hoffer, “The Leg Has Some Metal but No Rust,” Los Angeles Times, October 1, 1983.

  218West had offered Nixon Steve Springer and Randy Harvey, “Lakers Trying to Trade Nixon; New Kareem Bid,” Los Angeles Times, June 23, 1983.

  218“It’s inevitable,” he said Richard Hoffer, “This Nixon Is Proving Very Popular—With Inquiring NBA Teams,” Los Angeles Times, October 4, 1983.

  221–22“Who can blame John for going with Walton?” Jon Trontz, “Swen Nater, out from Walton’s shadow, off to fast start in pro basketball,” Christian Science Monitor, November 16, 1973.

  222“Comparing the Lakers to the Clippers” Thomas Bonk, “Scott Seeking 4-Year Contract,” Los Angeles Times, October 14, 1983.

  222“I think I’ve got the ability of a smaller Magic” Thomas Bonk, “Clippers Get Nixon; Trade Nater, Scott,” Los Angeles Times, October 11, 1983.