HBO’s most popular sports drama yet, Winning Time, is nearing the release of its second season, and there’s much to look forward to with most of the amazing cast returning for the new installment.
Winning Time was first seen on the streaming platform on March 6th, 2022, and despite having a slow start, the series eventually started gaining momentum and had almost half a million viewers by the season finale. With a total of 10 drama-packed episodes, the show was able to fit in most of the storyline revolving around Magic Johnson, Jerry Buss, and the rest of the characters.
Inspired by real events as well as the plot from Showtime by Jeff Pearlman, Winning Time is a dramatization of the 1980s era of basketball when the Los Angeles Lakers were making a comeback in the sport. The first season featured most of the 1979-1980 season of the NBA, which was a significant part of history for the team. It was when Jerry Buss had bought the LA Lakers and signed Magic Johnson onto his team. Despite being a rookie, Magic Johnson soon turns the tide of the game in his way and creates a solid platform for himself.
It was Jim Hecht who first came up with the idea of adapting Jeff Pearlman’s book into a show back in April 2014. It took almost five years for it to be taken up by HBO, with Max Borenstein as the creator and Adam McKay as an executive producer. The show will now be a part of HBO for a long time, as the creators have proposed the idea that they’ll be featuring the history of the team as far as Shaq’s and Kobe‘s eras.
Winning Time: What Happened In Season 1?
The first season began with Businessman Jerry trying his best to get ahold of the LA Lakers even if the team hadn’t managed to give out a good performance in recent years. He also buys Earvin Magic Johnson onto the team. Now being a rookie player, Magic Johnson does everything that would get him support from the rest of the players and the coach, but the fear and loneliness of being in a new place soon start to catch up to him.
The team trains at Palm Springs and is informed of a new playing style that ends up causing problems among the players. By the 5th episode, we see LA Lakers preparing for a new season, but Earvin is still getting used to the attention and hires a Financial advisor for consultation. Earvin develops a rivalry with Larry Bird from the Boston Celtics. Jerry Buss feels the stress taking over him when he has to deal with the team’s coaching problem and his mother’s illness.
The season ends with LA Lakers playing the game without the whole team, which causes them to be outnumbered in the NBA Championship. Magic Johnson wins the title for his team despite Kareem’s absence.
Winning Time Season 2: Expected Release Date
This time last year, in April 2022, HBO announced that they had already begun production for the second season. When the first season was ordered to start production in 2019, it took almost three years for it to make it to the streaming website. The delay could have been attributed to COVID regulations, so we might just end up seeing the second season earlier than expected. Season 2 of Winning Time can start airing its episodes by the end of 2023 or the beginning of 2024.
Winning Time Season 2: Returning Cast
Most of the main cast from Winning Time’s first season will be making a comeback in the second installment. This includes John C. Reilly in the role of Jerry Buss and Quincy Isaiah as Magic Johnson. Both actors have received positive reviews for their performance in the Fourth Wall-breaking sports show. Other cast members that we’ll be seeing are Jason Clarke as Jerry West, Adrien Brody as Pat Riley, and Gaby Hoffman as Claire Rothman.
Tracy Letts will portray Jack McKinney, while Jason Segel will return as Paul Westhead. Solomon Hughes, who plays Kareen Abdul-Jabbar, will unquestionably be a part of season 2. Recurring characters will include Sean Patrick Small as Larry Bird. Sarah Ramos, Molly Gordon, Rob Morgan, and Sally Field will be starring in the second season too.
Where To Watch Winning Time Season 2?
Once the airing of Winning Time season 2 begins, the episodes will be available to watch at HBO and other streaming platforms like Hulu and Prime Video. Canadian viewers can watch sports drama on Crave and Apple TV, while viewers from the UK can head over to Sky.
Also Read: 35 Best Sports Movies of All Time: Top Recommendations
