Game 47: Jerry Buss - 7 Layer Slam Dunk Dip

NOTE FROM THE COMMISSIONER OF GOLDSTEIN AND GASOL, PABLO GOLDSTEIN

Tonight’s game, regular season game #47 against the L.A. Clippers, has been postponed following the tragic deaths of Kobe Bryant, his beloved daughter Gigi, and seven of their friends. It’s been a surreal 48 hours for me. It’s been surreal not just for diehard Laker fans, but for any Angeleno who grew up here in the last 30 years. It still does not feel real. I’m waiting for the city to wake up from our collective nightmare.

I chose this game to write about Jerry Buss because it was the closest game to the anniversary to his death seven years ago. When Dr. Buss died, I headed to Staples Center to sign the giant white boards set for fans to leave their memories and prayers for the Buss family. On Sunday, I headed to L.A. Live for the same reason. Tonight’s game was supposed to be Dr. Jerry Buss tribute night at Staples Center. Instead, the stadium will remain empty outside of Lakers and Staples Center personnel, many of whom are undergoing grief counseling provided by the team. The Lakers Family really is that. Not only are they one of the last family-owned teams in American sports, but everybody from ticket takers and security guards to concession workers and janitors are part of that close-knit family. As of this writing, there’s still no word about Friday’s game. I’m going to assume it will be played. I’m going to assume I will cry.

I didn’t know whether to post today’s entry or save it for when the game is actually played. But to regain some form of normalcy, I’m running it today. There will be a companion piece giving my memories of Kobe up later tonight at 7pm.

R.I.P. Kobe Bean Bryant

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The late Dr. Jerry Buss, owner of the Los Angeles Lakers from 1979 until his death from kidney failure in 2013, contained multitudes. The man was a literal rocket scientist, a holder of a master’s and a Ph.D in chemistry who worked in the aerospace industry before realizing the L.A. real estate market held greater possibilities for him. The man was a notorious playboy, someone who openly dated multiple women for decades on his way to putting up numbers that Wilt Chamberlain could only wish to calculate from his date book. He was a showman, someone who saw the future of basketball and instituted now-normal factors like cheerleaders and bands that make going to a Lakers game “A Thing” in the entertainment capital of the world. And Buss was above all else a family man, someone who loved his six children, someone who put all of them to work for the Lakers at a young age so that when he passed, they’d be prepared to take care of his other family, the dozens, maybe hundreds, of employees in the Lakers organization.

But another thing the man loved was to sit down at a poker table.

Dr. Buss’ recipe for chip dip reminded me that the Lakers owner was well known and well regarded at Southland poker tables for much of his adult life. And it wasn’t just mob-run high stakes poker tables or Las Vegas tournaments where you’d expect someone of Buss’ status to be hanging around. Even as he flipped his thousands into millions into near-billions, Buss always retained the aura of a down to earth, blue-collar guy who happened to be a lucky son of a bitch. You could find him at the decidedly not fancy poker rooms at the Commerce Casino in Commerce, the Hustler Casino in Gardena, or Hollywood Park Casino right next door to his Fabulous Forum.

Whether he was sitting with Laker fans at the Commerce Casino or participating in a World Poker Tour tournament with some of the best professional players in the world, Buss was at home at the poker table. “It’s relaxing. It’s competitive. Once you get to be a certain age, there’s very few things you can do... competitively!” he told a reporter for the WPT. I’m sorry for the image I just put in your head of his pale, freckled 80 year old ass pounding away. But what was Dr. Buss anxious about that he needed relaxation? His legacy was secure, his fortune untouched by those he didn’t want to one day have it, his team were constant winners. For a man as lucky as Jerry Buss, it doesn’t take a USC educated rocket scientist to figure out why he really loved playing poker. It combined three of his interests: making money, making friends, and taking risks.

When he passed away in 2013, the World Series of Poker honored Buss by leaving a framed photo of him on the Seven-Card Stud table, where he finished a personal best 3rd place at the 1991 tournament. I have a guess as to why he never placed higher. It’s hard to have a good poker face when you can’t stop smiling from your good fortune.

NOTE: The amazing cover art you see of Jerry Buss up top was drawn by Oguzhan Kodalak. Check out his artwork, including other Laker pieces, at his Instagram @krepkod.

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7 Layer Slam Dunk Dip (serves 20)

2 10-ounce cans Jalapeno bean dip

1 cup sour cream

⅔ cup mayonnaise or salad dressing

1 1 ¼ ounce package taco mix

2 4-ounce cans chopped green chiles

4 medium ripe avocados

2 cups shredded mild Cheddar cheese

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon garlic powder

2 cups green onions, chopped

2 cups diced tomatoes

6-ounce can sliced black olives

2 ½ tablespoons lime juice

1 1-pound bag tortilla chips

Spread bean dip on a 15”x10” serving platter. Blend sour cream, mayonnaise, and taco mix and spread over the bean dip. Sprinkle the green chiles over the mayonnaise mixture. Mash the avocado and blend with the lime juice, salt, and garlic powder. Spread over the chiles. Sprinkle with cheddar cheese, onion, tomatoes, and olives. Garnish and serve with tortilla strips.

Blecccch. This was one layer too many. Canned jalapeno bean dip? It looks human cat food, but a decent bottom layer. Sour cream mixed with mayo and taco seasoning? Not bad, basically fake Cool Ranch. Can of green chiles? I would’ve gone with a cup of freshly diced jalapenos, but this is what Dr. Buss liked. Freshly made guacamole? Duh. 

Now at this point, this 7 layer dip has room for 3 more layers but the recipe lists 4 more: cheddar cheese, green onions, tomatoes, and olives. I should’ve skipped one of them, because the top combo layer of mixed olives-tomatoes-onions I added on top of the cheese ruined it. This 7 layer (really 8 layer) dip should top out at 5 layers, maybe 6 layers, TOPS. Look at me. If you remember the Bill Holiver entry, I sound just like the La Mirada Neighborhood Association suing a project because it exceeded neighborhood height regulations!