Netflix has a new sports comedy TV series calledRunning Point, and it’sthe only follow-up for anyone who’s missingWinning Timeas much as I am. For as many as there are out there, findinggreat sports comedy TV showsor just sports TV shows in general is a challenge. The sad truth is that a significant number of them aren’t anything special, which made it all the more disappointing whenHBO canceledWinning Timeafter just one season. Netflix’s new show seems like the most worthy substitute we’ve seen since.
Winning Timewas perfectly suited to my tastes as a lover of both the NBA and prestige television, but I could see why it didn’t have the broader appeal. That said, I was upset about it being canceled so soon, as I felt like it never really received the attention it was due.Running Point’scastincludes Kate Hudson, Max Greenfield, Justin Theroux, and Chet Hanks, a series of names that caught my attention, and while it’s certainly not as stylized and immersive of an experience as HBO’s series,I’ll tune in for a basketball management show any day.
Netflix’s New Show Running Point Is Very Reminiscent Of Winning Time’s Buss Family
Running Point Is Clearly Inspired By The Lakers
Running Point’sstory is fictional, but there areclearly some parallels between the made-up Los Angeles Waves and the real-life Los Angeles Lakers. The show is made without NBA brands, but its story is clearly meant to emulate the Buss family’s dynasty ownership of the Lakers, which is precisely whatWinning Timewas about. It’s almost like, instead ofWinning Timeseason 3 continuing the Lakers story, we’re getting a fictionalized version that picks up after a time jump. I’ll take it.
Kate Hudson’s Isla Gordon character narrates the intro, suggesting thatthe Los Angeles Waves are the defacto “greatest basketball franchise in the history of the game.“It’s a fish-out-of-water comedy about a party girl reforming herself to take over her family business, except that business is an extraordinarily high-pressure basketball franchise that will test her limits.
Running Point Gets To Show The Buss Family Story That Winning Time’s Cancelation Prevented
Jeanie Buss' Story Was Developing In Winning Time
Jeanie Buss was a supporting character throughoutWinning Time,andshe was beginning to show her chops as a management figure under her father, Jerry Buss. Of course, in real life,Jeanie Buss became the President of the Los Angeles Lakersafter her father passed away in 2013.Running Point’sIsla Gordon is clearly inspired by Jeanie Buss, with her being the unlikely young woman to take over in a male-dominated industry, a potential plotline thatWinning Timemight have eventually explored had it remained ongoing.
