I’ve been a Laker fan all my life. I remember when I was three and my dad pointed at Magic Johnson and said that is the best basketball player I will ever see in my life. When my dad was teaching me how to play basketball, he tried to teach me the sky hook. He said it is the unstoppable shot. The Lakers were a big part of my childhood. When I was 9 I joined the neighborhood kids league and I joined the team called the Lakers. I was fairly taller than everyone on the team but they still made me the point guard. I was consumed by everything Lakers related.When Magic retired and told everyone he had HIV, I remember crying. I thought he was gonna die real soon.
I was still a fan during the dark ages. When they had Sedale Threatt, Cedric Ceballos, and Elden Campbell as the marquee players. They had Doug Christie and Anthony Peeler. No offense but you know you aint gonna win shit with a lineup like that. The Lakers barely made it to the playoffs most of those years. They didn’t make it in one year.
Then came the Shaq and Kobe era. I was thinking its crazy how dominant the team is with them. As ESPN and everyone that talked about sports claimed, they were the best 1-2 punch in the history of the sport. 1 three peat and they could have gotten more if there wasn’t drama between Kobe, Shaq, and Phil Jackson. The mystique of the Lakers started fading for me at this point. The Showtime Lakers never had these problems. Magic and Kareem always knew their roles. Worthy never complained about anything. It was what I still believe a team should be. I was slightly turned off by it but still being a Loyalist, I rooted for the purple and gold every year. When the Kobe led Lakers struggled to get into the playoffs and he was going for 50 points a game, I still rooted for them.
When Gasol came into the mix, I was relieved. It seemed like the Lake show was back to form. Things were clicking and the teamwork was pretty seamless. Even when they got Ron Artest, I wasn’t too concerned. Sure he is a little crazy but his Finals post game interview alone made it all worth it.
Then this year, they got their asses kicked by Dallas. I wasn’t upset at the sweep. I was more upset with the way they lost. Them fools didn’t even try. They were saying shit like they had trust issues. I was actually rooting for Kobe to get that ring so that people wouldn’t compare him to Jordan anymore more. Unfortunately, the this season puts the nail in the coffin. He will never be greater than MJ. The team as a whole played like a bunch of bitch asses. Andrew Bynum’s elbow was absolutely despicable. It was a completely low point in the career. Again, not because they lost but because they didn’t lose with class.
Then the last couple of days, Kareem is whining and bitching about not getting a statue in from of Staples Center. Sure statistically, Kareem deserves a statue. But him bitching about it made me not respect him. I heard he was a dick but this really made me lose all respect for him.
Lakers you have disappointed me. I will still root for yall but I don’t think I will ever be a die hard fan like I used to be. Thanks for ruining it.
