SON RISES ON ‘TIME’
Actor plays his dad who starred on ‘Winning’ Lakers teams
An NBA champ’s son is walking in his dad’s sneakers.
HBO’s “Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty,” premiering Sunday, is chock-full of high-profile names: John C. Reilly as team owner Jerry Buss, Adrien Brody as Pat Riley and Sally Field as Jessie Buss.
The players, whose names are whispered like gods in Los Angeles, are played by mostly newcomers, highlighted by Quincy Isaiah as Magic Johnson and Solomon Hughes as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.
DeVaughn Nixon, though, comes at the show a little differently. He’s playing his father, former point guard Norm Nixon.
Despite joking that the role should have been “the biggest layup of my life,” the 38-year-old Nixon had to audition like everyone else, including his younger brother. Then he got a callback. Then he got the job, suiting up in purple and gold.
“Nobody gave me a handout,” Nixon told the Daily News. “I earned it.”
DeVaughn Nixon was born in 1983, seven years after his dad was drafted by the Lakers and four years before the start of the Showtime era, a decadelong run of a dynasty for the ages. But he remembers the slow realization he had that his dad was more than just his dad.
“I would go to the promenade in Santa Monica with my family to go to the movie theater and people were like ‘Norm, Norm, oh my God!’ ” Nixon said. “And I was like, ‘Did you work for AMC? Do you work for Wetzel’s Pretzels?’ ”
But Norm Nixon was never the star, not with Johnson and Abdul-Jabbar suiting up next to him every day. DeVaughn Nixon views “Winning Time” as a chance to get his dad the recognition he deserves.
“I started out wanting to make a mark. I wanted my dad to stand out. Too many times he’s been overlooked. My dad was a beast on the court,” he told The News.
“You have two of the greatest players ever on your team. It’s easy to get lost in the shuffle. But there were so many integral parts of that team that contributed to their success. Everyone has their own origin story, like we’re the Avengers or something.”
While several real Lakers, including Johnson and Abdul-Jabbar, have criticized the show, and the NBA itself tried to shut down production, Nixon spent hours with his son, doing drills and teaching him his signature moves.
“He always told me, ‘You’re not playing a fictitious character. I’m living and breathing, so do me justice,’ ” Nixon recalled.
The actor, who played basketball in high school, fasted and ran every day to get down to his father’s playing weight. He perfected his accent, a slight Southern twang from growing up in Macon, Ga. He worked so hard that he tore his meniscus before filming started and had to get knee surgery.
For Nixon, who’s appeared in “Marvel’s Runaways,” “MacKenzie Falls” and “Prom,” this isn’t just another role. This is his legacy.
The first season of “Winning Time” — HBO content chief Casey Bloys is already talking publicly about more seasons, including one focused on the Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant era — goes big and loud. Buss introduces the world to his combover and the scantily clad Laker Girls. Naked women are as commonplace on screen as fur coats. The Forum transforms from another arena to the hottest nightclub in Los Angeles.
Both the Lakers and “Winning Time” are as much about the vibes as about the basketball.
Norm Nixon won two championships with the Lakers, first in 1980 and again in 1982, when he led the team in scoring during the playoffs. He wasn’t the one everyone was coming out to see. He didn’t have to be.
“My dad was a dog on the court. I don’t want them to ever think that he never contributed to this. When people think Showtime, Magic, Kareem, I want them to mention Norm Nixon,” Nixon told The News.
“I love my father. He’s always had my back and I want to show him respect in the role and I want to get him respect.”