Smrek Sends Message to Malone and the Jazz in Lakers’ 111-100 Win

In the distant past, when stamps cost a nickel and people still wrote letters, they used to say that neither rain nor snow nor sleet could keep a postman from keeping his appointed rounds. Obviously, they had never heard of Mike Smrek.

Tuesday night at the Forum, the Lakers’ third-string center was more trouble for Utah’s all-star forward Karl (the Mailman) Malone than a pack of unchained Rottweilers in the Lakers’ 111-100 victory over the Jazz. Smrek blocked four shots, including two of Malone’s that he marked return to sender. And until Utah made a late run, Smrek had actually outscored Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

Smrek wound up with 7 points, 1 fewer than the Laker captain, and 5 rebounds in 13 productive minutes, after the Lakers opened a nine-point lead at the end of one quarter. They led by 17 at the half, 19 after three quarters, and after the Jazz closed to within 100-95, with 3:49 to go, Magic Johnson returned despite a slight groin strain to make sure the Jazz were heard no more.

“I thought Smirk did a very good job tonight, or however you pronounce his name,” said Utah Coach Frank Layden, whose postgame routine was far more entertaining than anything his team showed on the court.

“He’s from Canisius (in Upstate New York), which we used to have a rivalry with when I was coaching at Niagara. I can’t pronounce the names of those people.”

But while Layden may have had trouble with the name, be assured he knew the face--or at least the 7-foot frame.

“He’s a good strong kid,” Layden said of Smrek, who was signed by the Lakers as a free agent before the 1986-87 season. “I think the Lakers made a wise choice. I think you have a big body that you just have to give time. I know Bill Bertka (Laker assistant coach) has a good project there. This is a kid you work a couple of summers with.

“He played a very physical game, and I’m sure the price is right. I’m sure he’s not making $900,000. Hey, I’ll take him, if the Lakers cut him.”

Malone wound up with 18 points, almost 8 below his average, and hit only 5 of 15 shots from the floor. He also was called for a technical foul after one Smrek rejection.

“It was kind of tough for him because every time he touched the ball, we had three guys on him,” Smrek said. “We tried to play him so he couldn’t move toward the lane and hit that little jump hook. We tried to make it as tough as we could for him.”

Malone probably wouldn’t have known Smrek from the nearest mailbox before the game, but he granted some praise afterward.

“He came in and blocked some big shots and played some good defense,” Malone said. “I can’t say I’m surprised, though. Hey, he gets a check just like everybody else. Sooner or later, he has to get in there and prove he belongs. Tonight was one of those nights for him.”

It was a usual night’s work for Johnson, who finished with 22 points, 11 assists and 8 rebounds in 31 minutes, returning to the game only because it became necessary.

“It got to five points, and he said, ‘Only if you need me,’ ” Laker Coach Pat Riley said. “I said, ‘I need you.’ ”

On paper, this didn’t figure to be a particularly tough test for the Lakers, and it wasn’t. The Lakers came into the game having won 10 in a row at the Forum and had beaten the Jazz eight straight here and were 27-2 against Utah on their home floor.

The Jazz, meanwhile, had won 4 of 19 games on the road, and had played Cleveland the night before in Salt Lake City.

But Layden said he wasn’t frustrated by his team’s inability to win anywhere that doesn’t have a Utah dateline.

“Not as long as they pay me, and they pay me for road games, too,” Layden said. “I’ll tell you what frustrated is: getting a lunch pail, taking the BMT subway and going down to the docks on a cold, winter’s morning to work.

“This, to me, is a piece of cake. They’re not exactly making us go to Siberia or Afghanistan. They’re taking us to L.A., and tomorrow we’re going to San Francisco. To me, that’s a pretty good job.

“My father thought San Francisco was in Europe.”

And where was the Brooklyn-raised Layden’s father from?

“Ireland, of course,” Layden said. “All dumb Irishmen raise their kids to be priests, cops, bartenders or coaches. Who knows how close he came to making the right choice?

“I know bartenders and cops who make more than I do, on the side. I was 18 years old before I heard that cops got paid by the city, too.”

Layden, who had been holding court outside the visitors’ dressing room, headed back in.

“That’s all,” he said. “Any more than that, and you’ve got to pay for it.”

Laker Notes

James Worthy and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar were added as reserves to the NBA’s Western Conference All-Star team Tuesday, joining starter Magic Johnson as Laker representatives at the game. Byron Scott, however, was beaten out for a reserve position at guard by San Antonio’s Alvin Robertson and Portland’s Clyde Drexler in a vote of conference coaches. This will be Abdul-Jabbar’s 17th all-star appearance, a record, while Worthy is going for the third straight time. Scott will be going to Chicago for the weekend, too, to compete in the three-point shooting contest on Saturday. . . . Mike Smrek’s four blocks are a career high. Utah’s 7-foot 4-inch center Mark Eaton, the former UCLA player, blocked 6 shots Tuesday. He leads the league with 147 blocks.