Full-Court Press Greets Champ Lakers

The world champion Los Angeles Lakers, known for their fast-break offense, hurried through a victory celebration on the City Hall lawn Tuesday, cutting short the noontime show by 35 minutes when several persons suffered minor injuries in the crush of the surging crowd.

“It is like a corral with too many horses in it,” team broadcaster Chick Hearn said while surveying the spectacle of cheering fans pressed forward against a barricade of 50-gallon barrels filled with water, while others perched on monuments and hung from trees.

“The spectators weren’t hostile, they just had no place to go,” said Los Angeles police spokesman Lt. Dan Cooke. He estimated that more than 30,000 people had gathered at City Hall and along the 10-block parade route.

About 30 Injured

About 30 fans were treated for injuries, several collapsed of apparent heat prostration and more than 100 had to be lifted over the barricades, which separated the crowd from the players, politicians and other dignitaries.

Police said they made no arrests, but a naked man who reportedly attacked a television crew’s truck was taken into custody by Southern California Rapid Transit District security officers.

Until the spectators became unmanageable (and anything but laid-back, as Los Angeles crowds have been accused of being), it had been a happy affair, brought on by the Lakers’ National Basketball Assn. championship-clinching victory over the the Boston Celtics on Sunday.

While the Lakers had also won NBA titles in 1980 and 1982, this was their first ever against the Celtics, the most successful franchise in professional basketball history.

Several “Celtic-Buster” signs were brandished by spectators, as well as one with a nuclear-age theme (“Let the World End, I’m Happy Now”), one that was inspirational (“In Christ Opportunity Is Unlimited, We Prayed for You Lakers”) and one that was hopeful (“Party at Kareem’s”).

The biggest cheer of the day went to Laker star Earvin (Magic) Johnson, who improvised a victory dance on the stairs of City Hall and told the crowd: “It feels great! It feels good! Let’s do it again next season!”

Traditionally at such events, speechifying politicians are booed, but Acting Mayor Pat Russell (Mayor Tom Bradley was on vacation in Alaska) escaped this fate by hurrying through her remarks, declaring it “Laker Day” and handing a scroll to team captain Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

Abdul-Jabbar, teammate Kurt Rambis and owner Jerry Buss also spoke. By then, the crowd problem was growing more serious.

“I can’t breathe! I can’t breathe!” screamed one spectator, Marie Candelaria, 18, of Los Angeles, who was caught in the crowd. She was rescued by police and treated by paramedics.

Nearby, Mike Metzger, 19, of Placentia, pleaded with someone to rescue his 67-year-old grandmother, Rose.

“She’s collapsing in here,” he screamed at officers, who promptly lifted her out. She was also treated and released.

The City Hall ceremony, scheduled to last an hour, was curtailed after 25 minutes, just as the Laker band had begun to perform.

“We were supposed to do a Glenn Miller medley, but all we had time to do was a little of ‘In the Mood,’ ” band director Barry Spanier said.

From City Hall, the Lakers journeyed to Inglewood--the city that is their geographical home--where they were congratulated in the Forum parking lot by Mayor Edward Vincent, who outdid Los Angeles by declaring it “Lakers’ Week” in his city.

Inglewood police said a larger-than-expected crowd of 8,000 showed up, but officers described the group as peaceful.

The long day of celebrating for the Lakers began in the morning with a 10-block parade through downtown Los Angeles to City Hall.

Along Broadway, spectators had crowded into the street, blocking the route--until the LAPD’s Mounted Patrol arrived. The intransigents scurried to the sidewalks, one yelling that he didn’t want to be sullied by a horse.

Then came three floats carrying Laker personnel, a “Fan Van” advertising Laker season tickets, and two marching bands.

At the tag end were two free-lance marchers, 72-year-old Sippo the Clown Prince, on roller skates and adorned in Indian headdress and clown nose while playing a guitar, and 55-year-old Clifford Slater, who wore a T-shirt that listed all the parades in which he had marched (he had to pull his shirt out of his pants to show his Beverly Hills parade credit).

A young father from the Mexican state of Guanajuato held up his 2-year-old son, who cheered, “Viva los Lakers!”

Maria Rojas, 19, declared her devotion by calling out to Magic Johnson, “Magic, venga a mi casa! (Come to my house!).”

The crowd even cheered the marching band of Inglewood High School, apparently forgiving the members for wearing uniforms that were Celtic green.