NOTE: this post contains spoilers for Winning Time season 2 episode 6, "Beat L.A."
The Lakers managed to beat the Philadelphia 76ers in the 1982 NBA finals, but wound up getting swept by the 76ers the following year. The disappointing finish to the 1983 season left the Lakers doing some soul-searching which led to Norm Nixon (DeVaughn Nixon) being traded from the team.
Elsewhere, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (Solomon Hughes) had a change of heart about his desire to leave Los Angeles after a devastating fire burns down his home. Also, Jerry Buss (John C. Reilly) and his marriage to Honey (Ari Graynor) dissolved with her leaving and filing a $100 million lawsuit against him.
However, what was actually fact and fiction in the episode? Here’s what we found out.
Was Norm Nixon traded to the Clippers on his birthday?
The fiction
Following the Lakers’ loss in the 1983 finals, Buss met with Pat Riley (Adrien Brody), newly cemented general manager Jerry West (Jason Clarke) and Bill Sharman (Brett Cullen) to discuss what needed to change in order for the team to claim another championship title. That’s when attention was placed on the team roster.
Later on, West shared with Riley and Sharman that he had a deal on the table with the Clippers to get Swen Nater and Byron Scott. However, the Lakers would have to get rid of one of their stars, and the decision was ultimately made that Nixon would be traded. Even though Magic Johnson (Quincy Isaiah) enjoyed playing with Nixon, he too approved of the deal.
Then, while on the set of Fame with his girlfriend Debbie Allen (Ta'Nika Gibson), the couple talked about him being traded to the Clippers on his birthday. The news made for an awkward conversation piece at his birthday party, especially when Nixon called West out for never liking him.
The fact
According to Sports Illustrated, it was announced on October 10, 1983, that Norman Nixon was to be traded from the Lakers to the then-San Diego Clippers. The news came a day before Nixon’s 28th birthday. In fact, friends wound up throwing him a combination birthday/farewell party the night of the tenth.
Now according to The Los Angeles Times, the circumstances between Jerry West and Nixon leading up to the trade were tense. Nixon even alleged that West hired a team to follow him to prove that Nixon was “hanging out with drug dealers” and was doing drugs. Nixon refuted this notion and pointed to his attendance at practices and games, as well as his gameplay, as proof of his innocence. We really encourage you to check out The LA Times piece to get more on that story.
Did Jerry Buss marry Honey Kaplan?
The fiction
At the start of the season, Buss rekindled a relationship with his former flame Honey. Things were going so well between the two that they even decided to get married. However, in the recent Winning Time episode, their marriage fell apart. She was tired of him giving all his attention to the Lakers and decided to occupy her time with some late-night partying.
Ultimately, Honey opted to call it quits with Buss when she found out that he married her knowing he was still married to his first wife JoAnn Buss. Furthermore, after leaving Jerry, she decided to sue him for $100 million. The particulars of the suit have so far not been disclosed. What was revealed upon close inspection of the documents served to Jerry was Honey’s first name — Veronica.
The fact
There appears to be some mystery surrounding Buss’ marital history. According to Fox, as well as several other sources, Jerry divorced his first wife JoAnn in 1972. Now looking to Showtime: Magic, Kareem, Riley, and the Los Angeles Lakers Dynasty of the 1980s, the book that serves as the basis for Winning Time, Jerry married Veronica in 1972 but he was allegedly still married to his first wife.
Referring to The Los Angeles Times, Veronica did accuse Jerry of marrying her prior to being divorced from JoAnn. Additionally, when Veronica split with Jerry in 1983, she sued him because of promises he made during their time together. The two parties eventually settled for an undisclosed amount.
It’s important to note here that in the show, it’s depicted that Jerry reconnected with Honey aka Veronica in 1980 and then the pair split in 1983. Again in real life, Veronica apparently “wed” Jerry in 1972.
Did Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s home catch on fire?
The fiction
During the middle of the NBA season, Abdul-Jabbar’s home caught fire. Thankfully, his partner and young child made it out of the house uninjured, although the press announced that his jazz collection was destroyed. During a touching moment in the episode, Laker fans showed up at The Forum with jazz albums to give to the NBA superstar as a kind gesture.
The fact
Sadly as reported in The New York Times, on January 31, 1983, a fire swept through his LA home while he was in Dallas with the Lakers preparing for a matchup with the Mavericks. When he received the news he immediately flew home to make sure his fiancee, Cheryl, and son, Amir, were unharmed. Once confirming they were okay, he flew back to Dallas in time for the game on February 2.
In terms of the damage, the article states:
“The home was destroyed, as were most of his possessions - including part of a valuable Oriental rug collection, much of his basketball memorabilia and all of a record album collection that numbered in the thousands.”
Winning Time season 2 airs new episodes live on Sunday on HBO at 9 pm ET/PT. Season 2 episodes are also available to stream on Max.
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