In the 1987 movie “Wall Street,” Gordon Gekko, the corporate raider who was played by Michael Douglas, spawned a pop culture catchphrase when he uttered the infamous line, “Greed, for lack of a better word, is good.”
The movie came to be seen as a symbol of the narcissism, self-centeredness and excess of the 1980s. Many have realized in the years since that greed isn’t a good thing.
Buy Lakers TicketsWhile that may be true in the real world, greed is still a good thing in the realm of sports, at least in a competitive sense.
After taking a 3-1 series lead over the Memphis Grizzlies with an intense 117-111 overtime win on Monday, the Los Angeles Lakers need to embrace the “greed is good” mentality.
They can either come out in Game 5 in Memphis on Wednesday with the mindset that they have a cushion and Game 6 back in Los Angeles, or they can go for the kill and maintain the intensity they displayed in the last two contests, especially on the defensive end.
At various times in the regular season, the Purple and Gold have come out flat in games they could’ve or should’ve won. In particular, close losses to the Indiana Pacers, Dallas Mavericks, Minnesota Timberwolves, Charlotte Hornets and Chicago Bulls have stuck out and made fans wonder if this Lakers team has a killer instinct.
If there is a time for them to develop that type of instinct, it is now. The Grizzlies will come out like wounded animals in Game 5, especially given they’ll be back home. At the very least, L.A. cannot allow itself to fall behind early by more than a few points.
If anything, it needs to look to run the Grizzlies off their own court and embarrass them in front of their fans.
The time is now for these new-look Lakers, and they need to seize the day. After all, not even Gekko or his real-life counterparts could’ve bought an NBA championship ring.
