CHATTER: IT IS A MINOR DILEMMA.

Byline: Lee Barnathan Staff Writer

Greg Minor has a dilemma: Play in Europe or play with Magic Johnson.

Minor doesn't mind having to make such a choice. It shows him his basketball career is moving along.

``It's cool. It's all good for me,'' he said last week. ``I worked real hard.''

Minor was one of two Cal State Northridge players who made himself eligible for the NBA draft but wasn't drafted. He was cut by the Clippers after a tryout.

But through the efforts of his father, Greg Sr., Minor got a tryout with Johnson, who coaches and plays on a traveling All-Star team.

This time, Minor stuck. He has been with the team for a month. In his first game, against an International Basketball Association team in San Diego, Minor scored 17 points.

``Magic said, `Come off the bench and give us a spark and put the ball in,' '' Minor said. ``He taught me how to come off screens real good.''

Now, Minor has a choice. He can stay with Johnson and learn from one of the game's greats. Playing with former NBA players Mitchell Butler, John Williams, LaSalle Thompson and Jack Haley isn't bad, either.

Or, Minor can go to Europe. A team in England is interested. His agent, Audrey Smith of Dallas-based Vector Sports Management, would like to see him go to England.

``Either way, he can get picked up,'' Smith said. ``I think it's better to take the job in Europe where he can still get exposure. Some NBA teams know of him, so they'll have no problems watching him play.''

Minor said he will talk to Johnson before making a decision. . . .

Pepperdine women's volleyball coach Nina Matthies earned the West Coast Conference's Coach of the Year award after leading the Waves to a 14-0 conference record and their first title in eight years. Matthies has won the award six times in her 17 seasons.

Middle blocker Jamie Hill and setter Melissa Plass made the All-WCC first team. Outside hitters Stacy Rouwenhorst and Melissa Snow made the second team. . . .

UCLA volleyball player Elisabeth Bachman made the GTE Academic All-District VIII Women's Volleyball first team. Thousand Oaks graduate Jenn Detmer, who plays at Stanford, made the second team. . . .

Even the Pacific-10 gets it wrong sometimes: The conference announced its all-academic football team. On the honorable mention list is Arizona receiver Leonard Malosi.

That person doesn't exist. It's Palmdale graduate Malosi Leonard who made the team.

Four USC players and one UCLA player made the academic first team: quarterback Mike Van Raaphorst, running back Chad Morton (for the fourth time), fullback Brennan Ochs, offensive lineman Matt Phelan (he's the Bruin) and safety Frank Carter.

USC's Scott Huber received honorable mention, as did UCLA's Danny Farmer, Randy Hakes and Brad Melsby. Burroughs graduate J.K. Scott, a quarterback at Washington, also received honorable mention.

Cal soccer player Tami Pivnick (Chaminade), made her sport's second team.

Eligible players must maintain a 3.0 grade-point average and be either a starter or a significant substitute. . . .

Camarillo graduate Kasey Jungwirth, a volleyball player at Cal State Los Angeles, earned her third consecutive All-California Collegiate Athletic Association award after a team-high 406 kills, the seventh highest total in school history.