IT'S A RAM-ROD JOB: LAKERS' NEW COACH, FORWARD PUT TOGETHER VICTORY IN ACT I : LAKERS 99 CLIPPERS 83.

Byline: Howard Beck Daily News Staff Writer

Years hence, historians will no doubt debate whose era this was. There will be the staunch Rambis camp and the equally stubborn Rodman camp, each clinging to its own interpretation of events and hairstyle trends.

But Friday night, as the Lakers unveiled a new coach and a new power forward, the only debate was over how many dozen points would comprise the Lakers' margin of rout over the Clippers.

And a 99-83 victory seemed like a good enough start for both head coach Kurt Rambis and Designated Worm, Dennis Rodman.

Whoever's era it is, the Lakers are 1-0 in it.

In punishing their soon-to-be arena roommates for the second straight night, the Lakers continued a steady counterturn out of the three-game tailspin that got coach Del Harris fired two days earlier.

And the Clippers? The Chris Ford-Michael Olowokandi era is heading for its own brand of notoriety, having lost 11 straight to begin the season. The Clippers are six losses away from matching Miami's 1988 record for worst start to a season.

A week of chaos at last came to a close for the Lakers. They introduced Rodman on Wednesday, Rambis 2-1/2 hours before game time, and had a double-digit lead 10-1/2 minutes into the game, with the 17,505 in attendance already hoarse from pregame introductions.

Rambis' impact will take time to evaluate.

Rodman's? Easy. The Lakers won by 16 points.

In Rodman's first 17 minutes of play, the Lakers outscored the the Clippers by 19. He finished with 11 rebounds, six assists and zero points on two loudly cheered field-goal attempts.

In short, he was much the same Rodman that helped the Chicago Bulls to their last three NBA championships, looking every bit as tenacious as he did in Game 6 of the Finals - his most recent game - last June.

The lockout, the reported offseason of partying, his lack of a team to practice with the last six weeks, none of it seemed to affect Rodman.

The hair, by the way, was a muddy mix of browns and blacks and possibly some purple and yellow, maybe a bit of blue . . . well, it was hard to tell. In transition, as Rodman put it.

Kobe Bryant led the Lakers' non-rebounding category, scoring a game-high 22 points. Shaquille O'Neal added 19.

Even before Rodman had wrapped his arms around a single loose ball, he was earning high marks from his new team. To start with, he learned the playbook in less than an hour. And by the time he joined his first shootaround, Rodman was giving teammates pointers on defending the pick-and-roll.

And oh yeah, he plays a little defense.

``He brings to the game a defensive and rebounding addition that we welcome,'' assistant coach Bill Bertka said. And then he gave the Worm perhaps the highest praise one can give a new Laker: a comparison to the legends.

``There's another aspect he brings to the team that I like,'' Bertka said. ``I think back to when Wilt (Chamberlain) came to the team, I think back to when Kareem came to the Lakers. They brought a mental toughness and a professionalism to the franchise, that professionalism and that toughness is infectious. Dennis loves to play basketball, and I think that for our team is going to be a very helpful aspect.''

Rodman wasted little time showing his hustle, and the Lakers wasted no time in capitalizing on it.

The ``Rod-man'' chants came with 6:11 left in the first quarter, and Rambis obliged nine seconds later, the Worm greeted by a standing ovation as he replaced Travis Knight.

Thirty seconds later, O'Neal dunked after an offensive possession that was saved when Rodman grabbed a loose ball. Thirty-six seconds after that, Rodman grabbed a Bryant miss and fed O'Neal for a layup and 3-point play.

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Photo, Box

Photo: (Color) Dennis Rodman makes his point, taking a defensive stance for his new team in his Lakers debut.

Tom Mendoza/Daily News

Box: GAME RECAP