Advertisement

A purple and golden moment at Lakers rally

Share

Wearing gold-and-purple tutus, necklaces strung with purple Christmas balls and fright wigs bristling with gold-and-purple frizz, Lakers fans showed their loyalty Wednesday with a quirky show of colors.

Daniel Hernandez, 42, walked away from the Coliseum, where players addressed their fans, wearing on his head a two-foot gold replica of the championship trophy he had fashioned. He would not divulge what the hat was made of.

“It’s my secret,” said Hernandez, a heating and air-conditioning installer from San Bernardino.

Advertisement

Marisol De Luna borrowed a floor-length, yellow-and-purple striped poncho with a satin basketball in the center from her husband.

“I didn’t have a Laker shirt,” the 26-year-old Mission Hills doctor’s assistant explained as her daughter, Marilu, 3, peeked out from under the heavy fabric.

Four co-workers playing hooky from a KFC in Bell Gardens jumped up and down for the cameras -- any camera -- with a homemade sign in purple ink that read:

“Gas to Staples Center: $25

“McDonalds breakfast: $12.72

“Championship T-shirt: $21

“Losing our jobs for Lakers parade: Priceless.”

Jose Zuniga, 20, said they were already on probation for watching Lakers games at work, so they decided to skip their 8 a.m. shift.

“I know it sounds crazy, but we can’t afford tickets for the games. . . . Just to see the team for three seconds is worth it,” said Ricardo Veloz, 22, as the other three chanted “Three-peat” at the top of their lungs, followed by “We need a job!” and “We want a taco!”

Sandra Torres, dressed in a tight, spangly Lakers top and purple capri leggings and sporting alternating purple-and-gold-painted fingernails and toenails, was looking to meet men.

Advertisement

The 32-year-old stay-at-home mother already had a possible prospect that she met in East Los Angeles while cruising by the rowdy celebration on Whittier and Atlantic boulevards the night the Lakers claimed victory.

“He sent me a picture,” she said, flipping through her cellphone memory to show off the photo. “Guys cruise by in their cars and say, ‘Hey, what’s up?’ You stop and talk, and that’s how you meet people.”

Thousands of fans wore jerseys with their favorite player’s name and number -- predominantly Kobe Bryant, No. 24 -- but there were some imaginative twists on the theme. One T-shirt had two photos of Bryant, making it appear as if he were defending himself.

“Who can stop Kobe? Only Kobe can stop Kobe!” the vendor yelled.

Eleven-month-old Neveah Jimenez, cradled in her cousin’s arms drinking her bottle, wore a gold jersey playsuit marked “24.” One tiny curl was pulled into a topknot with a purple tie.

Horns sounded, and fans who lined up two deep along metal barricades screamed “Lakers!” but Neveah just kept sucking. “She loves Kobe,” said her mother, Crystal Jimenez, 25. “I have a bobblehead doll of Kobe and she claps when I give it to her.”

Times staff writers Ari Bloomekatz and Carla Hall contributed to this report.

--

gale.holland@latimes.com

Advertisement
Advertisement