B-PLUS: LAKERS' FIRST HALF COULD HAVE BEEN BETTER : A PLAYER-BY-PLAYER ANALYSIS OF THE FIRST HALF OF THE 1997-'98 SEASON.Byline: Howard Beck Daily News Staff Writer The Lakers walked away from the first half of the season like a gambler who pries pries 1 v. Third person singular present tense of pry1. n. Plural of pry1. himself from the craps craps: see dice. craps Gambling game in which each player in turn throws two dice, attempting to roll a winning combination. The term derives from a Louisiana French word, crabs, which means “losing throw. table, his pockets stuffed tight with the casino's money, but still muttering mut·ter v. mut·tered, mut·ter·ing, mut·ters v.intr. 1. To speak indistinctly in low tones. 2. To complain or grumble morosely. v.tr. about the last bad roll. Could have won another grand, he figures. Could have won another half-dozen, the Lakers figure. Muttering to themselves are the Lakers, who emerge from the All-Star break with the second best won-loss percentage in the NBA NBA abbr. 1. National Basketball Association 2. National Boxing Association NBA (US) n abbr (= National Basketball Association) → Basketball-Dachverband (= but can't enjoy it because they failed to win 11 times in 45 tries. This is the Laker Way. Rick Fox was accustomed to losing 11 games per month with the Boston Celtics, but in a few months here he is fully indoctrinated in Lakerspeak. Happy with a 34-11 record? As if. ``Well, you know after that start, I was hoping to be undefeated,'' Fox says, and he's not entirely joking. The Lakers' 11-0 start set a franchise record and did nothing to cool expectations of a championship season. They felt unbeatable. Looked it, too. Humility came in the form of a three-game losing streak in early December, and in a loss to Golden State, in a 21-point rout from the Bulls and in two defeats to Philadelphia. They closed out the first half of the season with a three-game winning streak Noun 1. winning streak - a streak of wins streak, run - an unbroken series of events; "had a streak of bad luck"; "Nicklaus had a run of birdies" and an inspired blowout of the Bulls. But it's the 11 losses and a few ugly wins that still bug them. ``I don't think you can say we're satisfied,'' Fox said. ``I know I'm not satisfied. We had drop-offs throughout the course of the first half. It taught us something about ourselves, but it didn't need to happen. Success is found through failure. But you learn the lesson once, it shouldn't happen again.'' So Kobe Bryant Kobe Bean Bryant (born July 23 1978) is an American All-Star shooting guard in the National Basketball Association (NBA) who plays for the Los Angeles Lakers. , who at age 19 might be thrilled just to be contending for an NBA title, is not. ``This team's potential is so high that I don't think we'll ever be completely satisfied with what we've accomplished,'' he said. And when Robert Horry Robert Horry (born August 25, 1970 in Harford County, Maryland) is an American National Basketball Association basketball player. Currently playing for the San Antonio Spurs, Horry is is known for his ability to make clutch shots in big games. is asked to rate the Lakers' pre-All-Star break efforts, he says they earned only a B-minus. ``I thought (we) would be a lot better. We lost some games we shouldn't have lost,'' he said. Which is true enough. As coach Del Harris is quick to note, despite the Lakers' handful of letdowns, they still could have won another half-dozen games if they just shot a consistent 70-75 percent from the foul line foul line n. 1. Baseball Either of two straight lines extending from the rear of home plate to the outer edge of the playing field and indicating the area in which a fair ball can be hit. 2. . They were under 70 percent in 10 of 11 losses and shot worse than 60 percent in four of those. There have been other culprits. Injuries felled Shaquille O'Neal Shaquille Rashaun O'Neal (pronounced "shak-KEEL") (born March 6, 1972 in Newark, New Jersey), frequently referred to simply as Shaq, is an American professional basketball player, generally regarded as one of the most dominant in the National Basketball Association (NBA). for 20 games, Horry for five, and Nick Van Exel Nickey (Nick) Maxwell Van Exel (born November 27 1971 in Kenosha, Wisconsin) is a retired American professional basketball player in the NBA. Van Exel, a 6'1" left-handed point guard, was most well known for his flashy style of play and his ability to hit critical shots during and Bryant for three each. When the Lakers' preferred starting lineup For the line of action figures, see . A starting lineup in sports refers to the set of players actively participating in the event when the game begins. The players in the starting lineup are commonly referred to as starters, whereas the others are substitutes - O'Neal, Horry, Fox, Van Exel and Eddie Jones - played, they went 12-3 (.800). When O'Neal played, including two rehab games off the bench, the Lakers were 18-4. In many ways, the Lakers are still learning how to make their wealth of talent work together. Several players said they haven't fully adjusted to O'Neal's return. ``We don't respond very well yet to his presence, in the sense that there's too much pressure on him to carry us,'' Fox said. ``It's not his job to carry us. We're throwing (the ball) in there so much and then just standing around, which is not good for the team.'' Time, then, is the Lakers' enemy. Time to adjust and time to heal would be nice. But as the season resumes tonight in Portland, they continue as a work in progress. And neither O'Neal nor Van Exel will be at full strength this season. But the abdominally impaired leader of the Lakers is not worried. Not with the loss total, not with the inconsistency. At least, not yet. ``I'd rather stay real close (behind Seattle), and then the last 10 or 15 games just blaze Justin Smith (born in Paterson, New Jersey on January 14, 1978), better known as Just Blaze, is an American hip hop music producer. Just Blaze has produced tracks for Jay-Z, Usher, Kanye West, Busta Rhymes, Jadakiss, Memphis Bleek, Cam'ron, Beanie Sigel, The Game, DMX, T.I. and just get it (the division title),'' O'Neal said. ``As long as we get the No. 1 spot and we get home-court advantage throughout, then I'll be really happy. ``Right now we're a game behind Seattle and we let a couple games slip away. We had some slippage Slippage The difference between estimated transaction costs and the amount actually paid. Notes: Slippage is usually attributed to a change in the spread. See also: Spread, Transaction Costs Slippage . But I'd rather have slippage now than slippage late. . . . If we still have slippage in March or April, then I'm gonna worry.'' LAKERS MIDSEASON REPORT CARD by Howard Beck STARTERS SHAQUILLE O'NEAL, Center: A- First-half highlight: Returned from six-week layoff, then won player of month in January (29.0 points, 12.8 rebounds per game). Comment: Star of ``Steel'' could use abs of steel, says he's still not 100 percent healthy. Not that anyone could tell by his numbers. ROBERT HORRY,Forward: B- First-half highlight: Ranked in NBA's top 40 in rebounds, steals and blocked shots. Comment: Rebounds, blocks, steals and assists per game all up over career averages, but shooting percentages are all way down. Needs to get more rebounds. RICK FOX, Forward: B First-half highlight: Scored in double figures 26 times and led team in scoring four times. Comment: Has provided the hard-nosed play, defensive support and 3-point scoring threat the Lakers wanted. EDDIE JONES, Guard: B+ First-half highlight: NBA player of month in November, is averaging 18.3 points, which would be a career-high if maintained over the season. Comment: Struggled during Shaqless December but averaging 19.6 points, 2.6 steals since O'Neal's return. Has justified decision not to trade him. NICK VAN EXEL, Point Guard: A- First-half highlight: Last-second 3-pointers forced OT on consecutive nights in November in wins over Spurs and Rockets. Comment: Has added maturity to talent, resulting in first career All-Star bid. Kept Lakers afloat during Shaq's 20-game absence. BENCH KOBE BRYANT, Guard/Forward First-half highlight: More like a highlight reel - pick any of his eye-popping dunks and reverse layups. Scored career-high 33 vs. MJ and Bulls in December. Comment: Top-scoring sixth man in the NBA (17.9 points/game) has backed up the hype, and he's even learning to pass now and then. Grade: A- DEREK FISHER Derek Lamar Fisher (born August 9 1974 in Little Rock, Arkansas) is an American professional basketball player with the Los Angeles Lakers. He was with the Utah Jazz but asked to be released from his contract to care for his 10-month-old daughter, who has cancer. , Guard First-half highlight: Led team to 3-0 record in his three starts, including a rout of Bulls. Comment: Second-year point guard is improving steadily, averaging 9.7 assists when he starts and has lowest turnover rate of any Lakers guard in the rotation. Grade: B ELDEN CAMPBELL Elden Jerome Campbell (born July 23, 1968 in Los Angeles, California) is an American former professional basketball player who played center in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Campbell played college basketball at Clemson University. , Center/Forward First-half highlight: Averaged 16.5 points/7.5 rebounds as starting center in Shaq's 20-game absence, leading team to 13-7 record. Comment: Great starting center, bad $7 million sub; has disappeared since O'Neal's return in early January, is losing minutes to young Mario Bennett Mario Marcell Bennett (born August 1 1973 in Denton, Texas) is an American professional basketball player. He is currently playing in France for Dijon Bourgogne. College Career . Grade: C CORIE BLOUNT Corie Kasoun Blount (born January 4, 1969 in Monrovia, California) is an American former professional basketball player. A 6'9" power forward/center, Blount starred at the University of Cincinnati during the early 1990s, where he helped his team reach the Final Four in 1992 , Forward First-half highlight: Keyed win over Bulls with 13 rebounds, 7 assists, 7 points in his first start of season. Comment: Despite pair of sprained ankles that won't heal, he's provided a reliable 4.9 points and 4.7 rebounds per game. Grade: B SEAN ROOKS Sean Lester Rooks (born September 9 1969 in New York City) is a retired American basketball player at the center position in the National Basketball Association. He attended the University of Arizona and was drafted in the second round of the 1992 NBA Draft by the Dallas Mavericks. ,Center First-half highlight: Provided steady backup to Campbell during Shaq's 20-game absence. Comment: Could be league's best No. 3 center, but with healthy Shaq, who needs a third center? Lakers haven't - he's played 21 minutes over past 14 games. Grade: B JON BARRY Jon Alan Barry (born July 25 1969, in Oakland, California) is a retired American professional basketball player and current television analyst for cable network ESPN.[1] Biography ,Guard First-half highlight: Getting signed by the Lakers. Comment: Not suited to point guard, and the sharpshooter is stuck behind two All-Stars at off guard, so he's played in only 25 games (8.4 mins, 2.9 pts.). Grade: Inc. MARIO BENNETT,Forward First-half highlight: Entering Lakers-Bulls game in the first quarter. Comment: Has played well in limited opportunities, but better known as lanky lank·y adj. lank·i·er, lank·i·est Tall, thin, and ungainly. See Synonyms at lean2. lank  i·ly adv. bench-warmer with finely honed ``raise-the-roof'' cheerleading The examples and perspective in this article or section may not represent a worldwide view of the subject.Please [ improve this article] or discuss the issue on the talk page. moves. Grade: Inc. COACH DEL HARRIS First-half highlight: Guided team to second-best record in NBA despite six weeks without his top scorer and rebounder. Comment: Doing excellent job bringing along Bryant, making good use of bench through variety of ailments to starters O'Neal, Van Exel and Horry. Grade: A- TEAM GRADE: B+ CAPTION(S): 7 Photos, Box PHOTO (1--Color) Guard Nick Van Exel emerged as a leader, but he missed three games because of a recurring knee problem. Terri Thuente/Daily News (2) Lakers coach Del Harris saw his team post a 34-11 record in the first half, but he remains concerned about injuries and inconsistent play. David Sprague/Daily News (3--Color) Shaquille O'Neal (4--Color) Robert Horry (5--Color) Rick Fox (6--Color) Eddie Jones (7--Color) Nick Van Exel BOX: LAKERS MIDSEASON REPORT CARD by Howard Beck (see text) |
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