TO THE LAKERS, DIFFERENCE IS LIKE KNIGHT AND DAY : CONFIDENCE GIVING ROOKIE A NEW AURA.Byline: Marc Stein Marc Stein is a sports reporter. He began writing for ESPN.com in 2000 and signed on full-time in 2002 to serve as the site's senior National Basketball Association writer. Daily News Staff Writer On his last visit to town, he was a nobody with no body. No one in Houston knew Tremblin' Travis Knight Travis Knight (born September 13 1974 in Salt Lake City, Utah) is an American former professional basketball player who was selected by the Chicago Bulls in the 1st round (29th overall) of the 1996 NBA Draft. . And now the locals won't even recognize him. They will undoubtedly be amazed to see that the skinny kid who was shaking as he lined up opposite Hakeem Olajuwon Hakeem Abdul Olajuwon (born Akeem Abdul Olajuwon on January 21, 1963) is a retired Nigerian-American professional basketball player in the National Basketball Association (NBA). that memorable November night looks like a totally different player - without any added pounds. What he has gained is confidence. Tons. ``I don't know Don't know (DK, DKed) "Don't know the trade." A Street expression used whenever one party lacks knowledge of a trade or receives conflicting instructions from the other party. how you measure it,'' Knight said as he prepared for tonight's return trip to the Summit to face Olajuwon and Charles Barkley This article is about the basketball player. For the politican, see Charles E. Barkley Charles Wade Barkley (born February 20 1963) is a retired American professional basketball player. and the rest of the Houston Rockets, a rematch in which he'll start at power forward for the Lakers. ``Confidence just kind of builds on itself.'' Knight is not alone in struggling to explain his unexpected rise from last resort in a double-overtime victory over the Rockets to a spot in the 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 in place of the injured 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). . There isn't a single employee in the Lakers organization who can claim that they expected anything close to what Knight has contributed since that emergency three-minute stint against Olajuwon on Nov. 12. ``If anybody else would have seen it,'' Lakers coach Del Harris said, ``(Knight) wouldn't be here.'' That he made it to Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. at all is miraculous enough. Because, to become a Laker, Knight first had to become the first first-round pick in NBA NBA abbr. 1. National Basketball Association 2. National Boxing Association NBA (US) n abbr (= National Basketball Association) → Basketball-Dachverband (= history to be released by the team that drafted him without being offered a contract. Only then could the Lakers sign Knight, the 29th overall selection in June, to a free-agent contract worth $220,000 for one season. Only after Chicago renounced its rights to the 7-foot, 235-pounder could the Lakers beat out Orlando, Milwaukee and Portland for Knight's services and then watch him beat out 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. and 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 for the primary minutes behind O'Neal and 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. . ``He's a muscle guy with no muscle,'' Harris said. ``. . . (Teams) thought, `We don't have to guard this guy.' He's a rookie and they didn't know him. By the time they found out, he had already gained his confidence.'' Added All-Star teammate Eddie Jones: ``That kid works. I don't know how he does it, but Travis does it every night.'' In his first 14 game nights as a pro, including the first meeting here, Knight totaled 14 minutes. But that is what the Lakers expected. When the season started, they viewed him as little more than a 7-footer with potential, another long frame to bang with O'Neal and Campbell and Rooks Rooks can refer to: People:
Then, right before his first showdown with the Bulls, Knight broke through for 14 points and nine rebounds in an overtime victory over Portland on Dec. 13. A little more than a month later, now firmly entrenched en·trench also in·trench v. en·trenched, en·trench·ing, en·trench·es v.tr. 1. To provide with a trench, especially for the purpose of fortifying or defending. 2. as the first big man off the bench, Knight had 16 points and 15 boards in a win over Golden State. Eleven of the rebounds came at the offensive end, two shy of the club record. ``Back in school, if you pushed him around, after about five minutes he would give up,'' said Golden State's Donyell Marshall, one of Knight's many more celebrated teammates from the University of Connecticut The University of Connecticut is the State of Connecticut's land-grant university. It was founded in 1881 and serves more than 27,000 students on its six campuses, including more than 9,000 graduate students in multiple programs. UConn's main campus is in Storrs, Connecticut. . ``He's come a long way. It's a 100 percent turnaround from when he first came to school.'' Said Knight: ``I knew my contract was guaranteed, so I thought I'd make the team. But I didn't think I'd get in so many games. I think it's starting to set in. I guess I'm getting adjusted.'' Knight certainly looks acclimated, judging by his recent success even without O'Neal as a tag-team partner. At first, stunned like everyone else by Knight's production, the Lakers attributed much of it to O'Neal's presence, theorizing that the attention Shaq draws around the basket is what enabled Knight to run the floor, crash the offensive boards and scurry about for loose balls. But his numbers have nearly double`d since O'Neal got hurt, in spite of a sprained left ankle that has been bothering him for almost a week. In six outings since representing the Lakers in the Rookie Game at All-Star Weekend, Knight is averaging 13.2 points, 7.8 rebounds and 2.2 blocks - better than what fill-in center Campbell was doing as the power forward. ``Every year, there's players that really surprise you,'' said Lakers executive vice president Jerry West, who has a history of drafting those players late in the first round, like A.C. Green and Vlade Divac and current Lakers rookie Derek Fisher. ``Travis is a wonderful surprise, a pleasant surprise to say the least, but to say that he didn't have talent wouldn't be honest.'' Nor would it be fair to suggest that the Bulls knew what they were losing when - after failing to convince Knight to spend a year or two in Europe so they could keep his rights without paying him - they elected to let him go. ``We didn't feel like he was ready to help us,'' Chicago general manager Jerry Krause said. ``Travis wouldn't have done that (well) here. We didn't feel Travis' body was going to be what we wanted him to be. He's really a (small forward) unless his body gets bigger.'' After every practice and on off days, too, Knight addresses that concern. He lifts weights more than just about anyone else on the team in hopes of someday getting to 255 pounds. What little free time remains is spent tending to his new aquarium - although Knight does admit that he'll occasionally flash back to that baptism against Hakeem ha·keem n. Variant of hakim1. Noun 1. hakeem - a Muslim physician hakim Moslem, Muslim - a believer in or follower of Islam doc, doctor, physician, Dr. the Dream. ``I was nervous,'' Knight said of entering the contest with three minutes left in the second overtime, immediately luring Olajuwon into a three-second violation and scoring three points after airballing a free throw. ``I was just kind of overwhelmed by the whole situation. ``But it's a little bit more satisfying when you come from nowhere. It's kind of like it was in college, when they said, `That kid from Utah, who's he?' '' TURNING IT AROUND Travis Knight in 41 games before the All-Star break: 4.1 points, 4.2 rebounds, 0.7 blocks Travis Knight in six games since the All-Star break: 13.2 points, 7.8 rebounds, 2.2 blocks CAPTION(S): Photo, Box Photo: (color) Travis Knight, right, is averaging 13.2 points, 7.8 rebounds and 2.2 blocks since the All-Star break. David Sprague / Daily News Box: TURNING IT ARAOUND (see text) |
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