NBA PLAYOFFS : Worthy Connects Again From Long Distance

The return of James Worthy and his jump shot, missing for all of one game, did not bring a missing-persons report along with it. A review of the events that led to the disappearance was simple and uncomplicated, like the man himself.

“I kind of knew what the problem was,” Worthy said. “I wasn’t shooting natural. I was rushing the shot. I was trying to push it a little too much. I just had to let it flow, put some arc on it.”

The result, a very Worthy-like playoff performance, brought another simple analysis.

“There’s no way to tell what it meant,” Laker teammate Byron Scott said of Worthy’s fourth-quarter shooting spree that helped the Lakers to a 110-107 victory over the Phoenix Suns Friday night at Veterans Memorial Coliseum and a 3-0 lead in the Western Conference finals. “What it really meant was a ‘W’. The simplest way to say what he meant to us was a win.”

Worthy scored 14 of his team-high 29 points in the fourth quarter. But the telling numbers were more like 15, 18 and 20. Those are the distances Worthy was connecting from, a welcome sight to the Lakers after his troubles from outside in Game 2.

A welcome sight to him, too.

“I missed almost all my perimeter shots in Game 2,” he said. “I just decided to keep shooting, and I did that tonight. I have a responsibility to this team. Magic (Johnson) is our floor leader, but when he goes out someone has to pick up the slack. . . . I wouldn’t say I put the pressure on myself to do that, but I was taking what was there.”

That would be the outside shot, with the Suns--particularly Tom Chambers--playing off him to protect against the drive. You couldn’t argue with the game plan after Worthy’s showing Tuesday night at the Forum (seven of 17 from the field and 19 points), but he made Phoenix pay for it anyway.

“They tried to take away his penetration,” Scott said. “If you give him the outside shot, like they were doing tonight, he can hit that shot.”

Worthy made 11 of 17 shots, including seven of 10 in the second half. He also had a game-high 12 rebounds, three more than any other Laker, many of which came in crucial times during the fourth quarter.

A great playoff game by Worthy should come as no surprise. He was named the most valuable player of the 1988 championship series.

Still, his numbers--even with the sub-par effort in Game 2 of this series--are close to staggering considering the added pressure of the playoffs.

Worthy hit 60.8% (93 of 153) of his shots in the previous nine playoff games. Add Friday night’s shooting and he’s at 61.2%.

And to think he has regained his shooting touch.

“(That’s) the mark of a great player, a guy who rises to the occasion,” Laker reserve Orlando Woolridge said. “When we needed big plays, he came through.”

Said Laker Coach Pat Riley: “The low post was very congested, and he (Worthy) just stepped out when they gave him the jump shot. They play him in the post and he just steps out. When he gets into a rhythm, he’s not going to miss many of them. He got into a groove. And it was timely.”