Even now, with the Celtics up 3-0 in the 2024 Finals, the Los Angeles Lakers are rooting for their old rivals to lose. However, according to former Lakers trainer Gary Viti, his support comes despite his hatred for the way that the franchise turned its back on NBA legend Jerry West.
“Longtime Lakers athletic trainer Gary Vitti, who worked for the team from 1984-2016, told ESPN ‘everything is so raw with me right now’ considering how L.A. distanced itself from West and other former franchise figures in recent years,” wrote ESPN’s Dave McMenamin. “The decisions that they’ve made, it makes it really hard to root for the Lakers. Not impossible. But it’s hard. Because you’re torn. Because there’s people that you love that were hurt… I’m team Jerry West. And no matter how things ended up with Jerry and the Lakers, if he were still alive who would never want the Celtics to win another championship. And I feel the same way.”
Former trainer Gary Vitti was renowned for his work on the Lakers, where he helped to provide skills training, fitness counsel, and injury prevention for countless players. He worked with Kobe Bryant and other legends during some of the best times in Lakers history.
After 30 years on the job, Vitti recently stepped down from the position and he’s openly speaking out on some of their decisions. Namely, he takes issue with the team’s treatment of the late Jerry West, who just recently passed away at 86 years old.
West is a Lakers legend who won the championship in 1972 with Wilt Chamberlain and Pat Riley. He spent all 14 years of his career on the franchise and retired in 1974 with averages of 27.0 points, 6.7 assists, and 5.8 rebounds per game on 47.4% shooting.
After retirement, West began work for the Lakers first as a coach and then as a scout for three years before eventually being named the general manager of the team leading up to the 1982–83 NBA season. West, a 14x All-Star, helped to usher in the next era of greatness for the franchise and, through his guidance, managed to win six championships over multiple decades.
Despite his resounding success and his overall importance in Lakers lore, he clashed with legendary head coach Phil Jackson in the early 2000s and it was enough for the franchise to force him out. They went so far as to rescind his free season tickets before parting ways with his son, Ryan, back in 2019. West was also personally offended when Lakers owner/governor Jeanie Buss left him off the list of the top five most important Lakers ever.
West taking a front-office role on the Clippers didn’t help to smooth things over and he went to his grave still on bad terms with the franchise he gave decades of his life to.
The whole situation has been overlooked by many Lakers fans and officials, but some both inside and outside the team still remember how it all played out. For Gary Vitti, he’ll never be happy with how the Lakers treated the basketball legend and that says a lot for a franchise that prides itself on being a top destination for NBA superstars.
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