THE DOG'S LOOSE MADSEN IMPRESSES LAKERS.

Byline: Vincent Bonsignore Staff Writer

EL SEGUNDO - The sound of a basketball bouncing off a hardwood floor echoes through the Lakers' practice facility. Thirty minutes after finishing a mid-day workout, most of the Lakers have already vanished into a hazy Los Angeles afternoon.

Except for rookie Mark Madsen.

Off in the corner of the gym, Madsen is playing a game of one-on-one by himself, first posting up an invisible opponent and throwing in a hook shot, then banking in a turnaround jumper.

On the other side of the gym, Lakers coach Phil Jackson nods toward his his new power forward and smiles.

``This is the second black eye he's had in the matter of 15 days,'' Jackson said, pointing out the swollen part of Madsen's face, a gift from the elbow of a Seattle opponent the night before during a scuffle for a loose ball.

To Jackson, the shiner is Madsen's badge of honor, more proof the Stanford rookie is a passionate, hard-working, high-energy player who doesn't fear the nasty side of basketball, the one far removed from the pretty jump shots and spectacular dunks that fill up all those highlight shows.

That's how the 6-foot-9, 240-pound Madsen earned the nickname ``Mad Dog'' in college, outworking and outhustling more-talented players to become the Lakers' first-round pick last June.

It's the same reason Lakers veterans have developed an immediate fondness for their new teammate, especially the one Laker who counts most. Shaquille O'Neal has embraced the 24-year old Madsen like some long-lost little brother.

It usually takes rookies a whole season to acclimate themselves to veterans and move past the status of first-year nobody to respected teammate. Madsen seems to have done it in two weeks by diving to the floor for loose balls, tearing away rebounds in traffic and racing full speed from one end of the court to the other in transition.

This is a guy who sprints from the bench to the scorer's table when Jackson barks out his name to report into the game, and not because he has to or because he's showing off.

``I'm a guy who just likes to do blue-collar work; I enjoy doing it'' Madsen said. ``I get an adrenaline rush from rebounding and from scrapping.''

The Lakers have noticed. On a team with the established hierarchy of O'Neal and Kobe Bryant, Madsen's emotion, toughness and unselfishness are ideal complements.

``He'll stick his nose in there and take whatever abuse there is and he's not going to back down from anyone,'' Jackson said. ``He gives an honest effort, but he's not dirty. He's just a very physical basketball player that plays a good solid game and the guys like that. It's fun to play with him. He's going to do everything he can to get the ball back to his team and everybody likes that.''

Madsen never set out to become Mad Dog, it just sort of happened.

The first sightings came at San Ramon Valley High in Danville, where Madsen's relentless play earned him a starting spot on the varsity team as a sophomore.

``In terms of his ferocious effort and intensity and his ability to maximize every ounce of his ability, that was evident in high school,'' San Ramon Valley coach John Raynor said. ``The 'Mad Dog' qualities were always there: tremendous passion and desire. And not just on the court. Mark is the type of person that has an unbelieveable passion for life and he gives 110 percent to whatever he's doing.''

In high school, Madsen was usually the strongest, tallest guy on the floor and the highest jumper, which enabled him to dominate on just his physical gifts. That changed once he arrived at Stanford in 1996 after serving a two-year Mormon mission in Spain.

``I was medium-sized and I could jump average,'' Madsen said, laughing.

In other words, Madsen had to figure out a way to succeed. So he turned up his intensity level, playing tough, aggressive defense, fighting for every rebound, flinging his body into harm's way for loose balls and navigating the floor with the speed and reckless abandon of a NASCAR driver on three shots of espresso.

``I was never a McDonald's All-American, I'll be honest'' Madsen said. ``When I first got (to Stanford), people were saying, 'Mark, are you going to be able to compete at this level?' '' So there's always been that question. I used it as motivation.''

It worked. In four years at Stanford, Madsen averaged 11 points and eight rebounds while shooting 60 percent from the field to help lead the Cardinal to four appearances in the NCAA Tournament - advancing to the Final Four in 1998 - two Pac-10 titles and a few weeks as the top-ranked team in the nation.

Along the way, Madsen became the most popular player at Stanford and one of the most admired in the country.

``He's the kind of player that coaches die to have on their team,'' UCLA coach Steve Lavin said. ``To me he's the classic example of a kid who plays smash-mouth basketball, knocks you on your butt then extends a hand to help you up, then comes right back after you and smashes you to the floor again, then helps you up again.''

Unlike most rookies, Mark Madsen won't have to alter his game much with the Lakers. Aside from the obvious adjustments to the speed, size and power of the pro game, Madsen simply has to do the same things he did at Stanford: defend, rebound, provide energy and hustle.

Don't expect him to start demanding the ball or complaining about shots.

``I've never been the go-to guy,'' he said.

Which makes him a perfect fit with the Lakers, who need an unselfish, physical player to do the dirty work and protect O'Neal and Bryant.

``That's why he's in the ideal situation,'' Stanford coach Mike Montgomery said. ``He recognizes Shaq and Kobe are the stars of that team, so ego will never be an issue. And you can already see how he's been embraced by his teammates, and with Shaq it's like, `You're my man, I got your back you got mine.' ''

Madsen's effective play though the exhibition season - he's averaging five points and five rebounds in 16 minutes - will probably earn him a spot in the Lakers' regular rotation despite Jackson's hestitance to rely on rookies.

In fact, at this point Jackson's only concern seems to be how officials will handle Madsen's hell-bent style. He worries they might penalize him, at least initially, for being so aggressive. That's why Jackson's made a concerted effort to expose Madsen to officials as much as possible in practice games.

``They have to get used to the fact that this guy is gonna give a lot of energy out there and it's good energy that's beneficial,'' Jackson said. ``They usually let a guy play if he's playing the right kind of way out there and I think he's the kind of player that can do that.''

Even if he's a Mad Dog.

CAPTION(S):

2 photos

Photo: (1 -- color) A shiner on Mark Madsen's right eye is evidence of the Laker rookie's battles against Seattle.

Eric Grigorian/Special to the Daily News

(2) ``I'm a guy who just likes to do blue-collar work,'' says hard-nosed Lakers rookie Mark Madsen

Eric Grigorian/Special to the Daily News