DOZING LAKERS NEED TO DITCH THIS SLUMBER PARTY.

Byline: KEVIN MODESTI

If they're smart, the Lakers realized something in the dramatic moment Tuesday night when a trio of NBA officials huddled at Staples Center's midcourt and decided (correctly) that the game-ending buzzer had sounded one-tenth of a second before Kobe Bryant released the jump shot that had appeared to beat the Boston Celtics.

They realized that time can run out on the Lakers, after all. They realized that things don't always work out for the champs in the end. And they realized it's time to wake up.

What that buzzer really was, you know, was an alarm clock going off.

It wasn't supposed to come to this - a three-game losing streak before a five-game Eastern trip that opens tonight in Cleveland.

It wasn't supposed to go like 2000, when the Lakers nearly let the playoffs get away after a brilliant regular season. It wasn't supposed to go like 2001, when the Lakers ambled through the regular season before getting it together in the playoffs.

The way it was supposed to go, in 2002 the Lakers would put it all together. They would not only win a third consecutive championship. They would make it a true championship season. They would play like champions from fall to spring.

When they opened the season 16-1, they knew they had it in them.

But knowing that seemed to be good enough for them.

Since Dec. 5, they are 19-15, worse than nine other teams in the league in that span, and have lost games to 10 of the teams worse than them.

This midseason snooze is the result not only of gravity, or of Shaquille O'Neal's toe condition, but of the Lakers' attitude that everything will turn out all right because it did the past two years.

It wasn't until the past couple of weeks that coach Phil Jackson and Lakers players began to see what was going on and refer to their own ``complacency.''

That cool attitude, which pervades not only the Staples Center locker room but the stands as well, continues to surprise Samaki Walker, the 26-year-old power forward who had never played for a defending champion before he signed with the Lakers in the summer.

``Having the best (regular-season) record doesn't seem to be the main key to this team,'' Walker said before the Boston game, his first on the injured list with a hyper-extended elbow. ``I think this team is confident we can win on the road wherever we are. We have the players to do it, we have the chemistry to do it, and when the time comes this team will get the job done. Some people would say that's sort of arrogant, but the fact is this team is capable of doing it. It's done it before.

``Even though we're stepping up the intensity, there's no one browbeating themselves, taking anything overboard. Look at Kobe and Shaq, who are the leaders of the team. Look at Rob (Horry) and (Brian) Shaw, who I think are the heart and soul of the team. Those guys are as laid back and calm as ever.

``Which is interesting to me. Being on the Los Angeles Lakers team, to me, is a lot of pressure. To go out and lose is a lot of pressure. I ask myself, 'Am I the factor?' These guys, it's like, 'It's a loss, (but) it's not even April yet.' .... It's a funny situation for me to come in and see that attitude.''

In 2001, Walker played in San Antonio, where the Spurs were victims of one of the Lakers' three playoff sweeps.

``I came from a locker room in San Antonio where the atmosphere is so tense you could feel the pressure in the air. Here you've got guys who talk about things they did last week, or golf - which is good, you know?'' Walker said. ``I say, 'Whatever works.' It's just something I'm not accustomed to. I'm the new guy. Who am I?''

For one thing, he's the guy who thinks there's something, well, different about this Lakers mindset.

``Most teams, (even) during preseason, are uptight when they lose. But this team here, no one gets uptight,'' Walker said. ``That was kind of shocking to me.''

Now, apparently, perhaps unfortunately, the attitude is rubbing off on him.

``It's not time to be alarmed yet,'' Walker said. ``Though, at the same time, I feel that since the All-Star break, the sense of urgency has picked up.''

It's all about reputation: If the Lakers were coached by Steve Lavin, people would be saying they're a typical Lavin team, talented enough to beat anybody, sloppy enough to lose to anybody. Since they're coached by Jackson, people say they're a typical Jackson team, wisely saving it up until the games really count.

Is it uncool to expect champions to play like champions?

Here's how I see it: You have this kind of season in 2001 and you're the fascinating story of colorful individuals coming together as a team. You do it again in 2002 and you're underachievers.

Despite all this, it's more likely than not that, in June, the Lakers will have another championship banner.

But a championship season? It's getting a little late for that.