Binge Sesh

Sure, the best professional athletes pull in salaries to match. But to find the real money in sports, you need to look someplace else: endorsements. 

In this episode of "Binge Sesh," hosts Matt Brennan and Kareem Maddox draw inspiration from Nike cofounder Phil Knight's pursuit of Magic Johnson in "Winning Time." With help from the HBO series' executive producer Rodney Barnes and industry insiders, we explore the origin, development and explosion of athlete endorsement deals, from a $6.6-million baseball card to social media "microinfluencers" and more.

For the podcast transcript, photos and links to much more, visit the episode page on latimes.com. 

The Laker Girls. The Forum Club. Celebrities sitting courtside. The beating heart of Showtime-era Los Angeles was the "Fabulous Forum."

In this episode of "Binge Sesh," hosts Matt Brennan and Kareem Maddox dive into the history of the Lakers' longtime home. We look back on the Forum's construction in the 1960s, its heyday under Lakers owner Jerry Buss and Forum general manager Claire Rothman, and the team's move to the Staples Center to understand how a sports arena became the perfect symbol of 20th century L.A.

For the podcast transcript, photos and links to much more, visit the episode page on latimes.com. 

There may be no figure in Lakers history more misunderstood than Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. And "Winning Time" tries to correct, or at least complicate, the record.

In this episode of "Binge Sesh," hosts Matt Brennan and Kareem Maddox discuss the perception and reality of the NBA's all-time leading point scorer. With insights from an array of special guests — including Solomon Hughes, who plays the Lakers legend in HBO's drama series — we look back over Abdul-Jabbar's career as a star center and civil rights activist to answer the question: Has he been unfairly excluded from the conversation about basketball's greatest-ever player? 

For the podcast transcript, production stills, real-life photos and links to much more, visit the episode page on latimes.com. 

In the male-dominated world of the Showtime Lakers, two women emerged as key figures: Jeanie Buss, daughter of and successor to team owner Jerry Buss, and her mentor Claire Rothman, the Forum's general manager and vice president. 

In this episode of "Binge Sesh," hosts Matt Brennan and Kareem Maddox examine "Winning Time's" depiction of women, with the help of actor Gaby Hoffmann, who plays Rothman, and Rebecca Bertuch, a writer for the HBO drama. Sifting through what's fact, what's fiction and what's something in between, we examine whether a story can be honest without being fully true. And we ask whether the series solves the problem posed by its womanizing protagonist, Jerry Buss. 

For the podcast transcript, production stills, real-life photos and links to much more, visit the episode page on latimes.com. 

Before Pat Riley led the Showtime Lakers to four NBA championships — and became a celebrity in his own right — the team went through enough coaching drama to fuel a soap opera.

In this episode of "Binge Sesh," hosts Matt Brennan and Kareem Maddox bring you the backstories of four key players in HBO's "Winning Time," each of whom served as head coach of Lakers in the four years at the start of the Showtime era: Jerry West, Jack McKinney, Paul Westhead and Pat Riley. From sudden departures and unfortunate accidents to Shakespearean betrayals and tabloid stardom, strap in for the series of unfortunate events that helped form the Showtime we know and love. 

For the podcast transcript, production stills, real-life photos and links to much more, visit the episode page on latimes.com. 

Every great story needs a villain — and for the Los Angeles Lakers, the biggest bad of all has always been the Boston Celtics.

In this episode of “Binge Sesh,” hosts Matt Brennan and Kareem Maddox explore the most storied rivalry in NBA history. From Larry Bird to the “Beat L.A.” chant, we examine how the Celtics — embodied in HBO’s “Winning Time” by legendary coach and general manager Red Auerbach — came to be the Lakers’ quintessential opponent, for reasons that went way beyond the basketball court.

For the podcast transcript, production stills, real-life photos and links to much more, visit the episode page on latimes.com. 

In the summer of 1979, as President Jimmy Carter lamented an American “crisis of confidence” and the NBA worried over declining attendance and TV ratings, two visionaries — rookie point guard Magic Johnson and new L.A. Lakers owner Jerry Buss — forged a marriage made in basketball heaven. 

In the series premiere of “Binge Sesh,” author Jeff Pearlman joins hosts Matt Brennan and Kareem Maddox to discuss how a generational talent and a born salesman came together to create the Showtime Lakers, the dynasty that defined a decade, birthed the modern NBA and inspired HBO’s new drama series “Winning Time.”

For the podcast transcript, production stills, real-life photos and links to much more, visit the episode page on latimes.com.