HBO Cancels "Winning Time" After 2 Seasons, X Users Call Foul

***This article contains MAJOR SPOILERS!***

Talk about a technical foul! HBO has announced that they have canceled Winning Time: The Rise of The Lakers Dynasty after two seasons, shortly after the season 2 finale (a.k.a the series finale) aired Sunday night. And, needless to say, folks are NOT happy about it. As reported by The Hollywood Reporter, co-creator Max Borenstein shared on X (formerly Twitter) that it was “Not the ending that we had in mind. But nothing but gratitude and love.” Executive producer Salli Richardson-Whitfield (who also directed a few episodes, including the finale) echoed that sentiment on Instagram: “When you give it everything you’ve got, you can have no regrets. I hope you enjoy the last episode of @winningtimehbo I am sure I will do many more hours of TV and hopefully many features in my future, but I can say that at this moment in time I am most proud of the work we did on this masterful show.”

Winning Time Ends With A LOSS?!

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The series, which premiered in March 2022, focused on the rise of the “Showtime” Lakers of the 1980s. Season one focused on Dr. Jerry Buss’ first year as team owner and the rookie season of star player Magic Johnson. Season two takes place in the four-year period that followed. Ironically, Winning Time ended with a big loss: game 7 of the 1984 NBA Finals, with the Lakers falling to Larry Bird and the Boston Celtics, 111-102. Sure, there was a brief rundown of what happened after that in the end credits. Still, fans are pissed as to what we won’t see on TV. What about seeing Magic & the Lakers getting their get back in 1985? What about seeing the growing friendship between Magic & Bird? The Lakers’ rivalry with the Detroit Pistons? Team USA? Magic’s HIV diagnosis that forced him to retire (which was teased in the very first episode)? The show was beginning to scratch the surface of what made the Showtime Lakers the dynasty that it was, which makes its premature ending all the more heartbreaking. Clearly, the Lakers’ loss to Boston was the ending that NO ONE expected, and the tweets prove it.

CHECK OUT THE REACTIONS BELOW!

(NOTE: Reactions may contain explicit language.)

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