Woolridge’s Agent Says He’s Talking to Lakers

Salary-cap restrictions may ultimately make the effort futile, but the Lakers are talking with free-agent forward Orlando Woolridge, a former No. 1 draft choice who was suspended by the National Basketball Assn. last February after admitting to a cocaine addiction and entering a Van Nuys drug therapy clinic.

Woolridge’s agent, Larry Fleisher, said he has talked with Laker General Manager Jerry West about the 6-foot 9-inch, seven-year NBA veteran, who played five seasons with the Chicago Bulls before signing with New Jersey as a free agent before the 1986-87 season.

Woolridge led the Nets in scoring that season, averaging 20.7 points a game, but last February he missed a team bus and two games, was fined $22,250 by the Nets, then admitted to a drug problem. Former Net coach Dave Wohl said later that the team had evidence of Woolridge’s problem as early as last October in training camp but did not act upon it.

Fleisher said Woolridge has been receiving some form of treatment for nearly six months and is in good shape.

“We haven’t gotten into a discussion of dollars, but there is an interest on their (the Lakers’) part and an interest on Orlando’s part,” Fleisher said.

Woolridge, who will be 29 in December, would appear to meet the Lakers’ desire for more scoring off the bench and also would provide excellent insurance for James Worthy, in the event that his chronic knee problems do not respond to therapy this summer.

But the Lakers are hamstrung by their inability to maneuver under the salary cap. Some money would be made available if the Lakers did not re-sign free agent Kurt Rambis, who was paid $525,000 last season. But they would still not be able to offer Woolridge half of the $1.2 million the Nets paid him last season, a figure confirmed by Fleisher.

League rules prohibit the Lakers from offering Woolridge a contract at a lower figure this season, with a contingency that they will make up the difference in 1989, when Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is scheduled to retire and the Lakers would have more room under the cap.

If Woolridge were to sign with the Lakers, without the guarantee of a handsome payoff in the future, it would be a major risk, Fleisher said, especially since he would not be protected against injury. Nonetheless, both sides intend to continue talks.

Rambis, meanwhile, has talked to a number of teams, including the expansion Charlotte Hornets, and may visit the Hornets in the near future, according to his agent, Peter Johnson. Carl Scheer, the Hornets’ general manager, said they’ve invited Rambis to visit to see how serious he may be about signing with Charlotte.

Johnson said both West and owner Jerry Buss have expressed a desire to re-sign Rambis. “Both of them told that to Kurt and his wife (Linda) a week after the playoffs were over,” Johnson said.

Rambis said Wednesday that he hasn’t talked to the Lakers yet about a new contract.

Laker Notes

In other negotiations, the Lakers appear close to signing guard Byron Scott to a new contract in the 5-year, $5-million range. Scott’s agent, Bob Woolf, is with the Michael Dukakis campaign in Atlanta this week, but he is expected to be in Los Angeles Friday night for Scott’s charity basketball game at UC Irvine Sunday. Presumably, Woolf will also find time to meet with General Manager Jerry West and work out details of a new agreement, which will represent a substantial raise from the $600,000 Scott received from the Lakers last season. . . . Rumors that the Lakers are interested in signing free-agent center Moses Malone sparked reports that Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, 41, might be bought out of the last year of his contract, for which he is to be paid $3 million next season. Laker officials did broach the subject to the team’s captain, but all indications point to Abdul-Jabbar’s return for an unprecedented 20th season with the team.