New book on Lakers’ Kobe dynasty includes scathing words on current Mavericks TV analyst
If you’re like me, the first person you always think of when you hear the words Los Angeles Lakers is Cedric Ceballos.
There was a time when the current Dallas Mavericks in-studio TV analyst actually believed that, so much so he gave himself the nickname, ’chise.
As in franchise ...
... of the Los Angeles Lakers.
“We laughed at him,” former Lakers’ teammate Eddie Jones said. “You can’t pick your own nickname. Ever.”
Jones is quoted as saying this in best-selling author Jeff Pearlman’s new book, “Three-Ring Circus,” which cover the Los Angeles Lakers’ dynasty that featured Shaquille O’Neal, Kobe Bryant and Phil Jackson.
The book is available now.
With the possible exception of the late Kobe Bryant, no one looks worse in this 390-page book more than Ced Ceballos.
Much like Pearlman’s best-selling book about the ’90s era Dallas Cowboys, “Boys Will Be Boys,” basketball and Lakers fan will drink “Three-Ring Circus.”
One of the aspects that makes Pearlman so good is his insistence on talking to everyone, which has yielded wonderful details.
In the case of Ced, this doesn’t work out too well.
“He gave himself a nickname,” ex-Lakers forward Corie Blunt told Pearlman for the book. “Think about the arrogance of that. Franchise? Really? You’re our franchise player? Okay, buddy. You ride that one out.”
Ceballos passed on being interviewed for the book. The Dallas Mavericks told me he did not want to comment on it, either.
Ceballos played for five NBA teams over 14 seasons, including the Mavs from 1997 to ‘00. He won the 1992 NBA Dunk contest by famously dunking a ball while wearing a blindfold, and he made one All-Star team.
In ‘94, Ced cut a hip hop album with Warren G. titled, B-Ball’s Best Kept Secret.
Some of the lyrics on Ced’s track “Flow On,” include this memorable stanza: “Word up, I got the formula, I’m mixin’ up the brew
“Take the 40 to the head now what you gonna do.”
The album was such a secret no one has heard of it.
Fame cracked his head, and it never left.
Originally drafted by Phoenix in the second round in 1990, Ceballos was traded to the Lakers in 1994. He was a member of the Lakers when they were going through the down periods between the Magic Johnson Showtime era and the Kobe/Shaq run.
Ceballos was with the Lakers the season Magic came back, in the 1995-96 season, after he had initially retired from the NBA when he announced he was HIV positive in November of 1991.
Johnson’s presence on the roster in his return season saw a pouting Ceballos desert the Lakers to party and ride boats in Lake Havasu, Arizona. The unannounced trip followed Ceballos for the remainder of his career.
Johnson retired permanently after the season, which left Ceballos as the Lakers’ ... franchise.
“There was nothing about Ceballos’s game or approach that appealed to [Lakers GM/VP Jerry] West,” Pearlman writes. “In fact, the Lakers’ vice president considered him to be everything that was wrong with the modern basketball player rolled into one figure: selfish, self-absorbed, incapable of passing, unwilling to play defense, who measured the game not by team benchmarks but by his numbers at the conclusion of 48 minutes.
“The majority of Ceballos’ points where achieved off of junk basketball and roaming the baseline seeking out scraps.”
The Lakers signed free agent Shaquille O’Neal in July of 1996, and traded center Vlade Divac to Charlotte for the rights to its 13th overall pick, Kobe Bryant.
“Ced was weird,” said former Lakers power forward and former assistant coach Kurt Rambis. “At some point in his career his ego replaced his sanity.”
One inane anecdote that supports Rambis’ claim: “In a says-everything-about-the-man moment, Ceballos once demanded that Lawrence Tanter, the PA announcer at The Forum, always introduce the forward last,” Pearlman writes.
Former Lakers assistant PR director Erikk Aldridge told Pearlman, “When [Ceballos] made the All-Star team [in 1995], he changed. Ced was all about Ced.”
In January of 1997, the Lakers traded Ceballos to Phoenix to acquire forward Robert Horry.
Ceballos lasted one calendar year in Phoenix before he was traded to the Mavericks. He was actually a part of the roster that had Dirk Nowitzki and Dennis Rodman.
Ced’s time with the Mavs was brief, and he was traded two more times in his career.
He was a decent NBA player who scored some points for a lot of bad teams, had one slick dunk, and made a lot of money.
However, he never should’ve been known as the franchise. It’s amusing to hear that he believed that.
Flow on.
This story was originally published October 2, 2020 at 6:25 PM.
