Lakers Show Orlando That They Don’t Forget

Call them elitist snobs, if you must, but the Lakers think they should never, ever lose to an expansion team.

But on Dec. 10, the Lakers smugly went into Florida, blew a 14-point lead and lost to the Orlando Magic. Laker players called that loss inexcusable, especially since some guaranteed they would not lose to expansionists.

Wednesday night was a form of retribution. The Lakers once again built a big lead against the Magic, but this time they held on for a 121-106 victory before 16,534 at the Forum.

“Remember it?” an incredulous Byron Scott repeated. “Of course, we remember it like it was yesterday. A team of our caliber, we shouldn’t lose to them. But I guess that happens.”

So, too, do games such as Wednesday night’s pay back. This victory, the Lakers’ 24th in 32 games, was as expected as their earlier loss in Orlando was surprising.

It ended a stretch of four games in five nights in three cities, in which the Lakers recovered from a road loss at Golden State to hammer the Miami Heat, then recovered from an overtime loss at Phoenix to easily handle the Magic. “I thought we played very, very well,” Laker Coach Pat Riley said. “We had a good bounce back from (Tuesday night’s loss to the Suns). A lot of things we didn’t do last night we did tonight, primarily challenging drives (to the basket) and contesting shots and rebounding.”

The Lakers pretty much did what they wanted to against the Magic (10-24), who will never be confused with the Suns. They resurrected their fast break, worked the ball inside and made 53.7% from the field.

Magic Johnson, sitting out the fourth quarter, scored 16 points and had 13 assists. Orlando Woolridge, who made his first six shots, came off the bench for 18 points. Not bad for headline writers just waiting to say that Orlando and Magic turned back the Orlando Magic.

But Johnson and Woolridge were not the only productive Lakers. Scott, regaining his touch by making nine of 17 shots, scored 10 of his 20 points in the third quarter. A.C. Green had 13 points and nine rebounds. James Worthy added 15 and Vlade Divac 12.

Unlike the Heat, which lost by 39 points to the Lakers, the Magic did not give in easily.

The Magic trailed, 98-74, entering the fourth quarter, but kept battling and, led by Otis Smith’s 28 points, made the final deficit a slightly more respectable 15 points.

Matt Guokas, coach of the Magic, realistically knew there was little chance of his team repeating what happened last month in Orlando.

“That would’ve been a little too much to ask,” Guokas said. “We got our win (over the Lakers). We’ll take it. . . . We didn’t offer too much resistance. They methodically did basically whatever they had to do to take control. I’d have to say they are the best in the league we’ve seen so far.”

The Lakers’ 24-8 record is the league’s best. Of their eight defeats, Laker players seem most upset about the Dec. 10 loss at Orlando. Maybe because they had that 14-point lead with six minutes to play. Or maybe because they shot only 39.3% that night. Nothing needed to be said about that loss. Laker coaches simply inserted the tape of the game into a video recorder before the game.

“That loss stung,” said center Mychal Thompson, who had eight points in 21 minutes. “In all my 12 years of playing pro basketball, that was the loss that hurt me most. . . . It was the first time I’ve seen this team at a loss for words about what happened. We were like contestants on ‘Jeopardy’ who didn’t know the answers.”

Wednesday night’s equation was quite simple: The Lakers, coming off a tough road loss and playing a team that upset them a month before, rolled to an easy victory.

“We just came in tonight to get the job done, and we did,” Johnson said.

Laker Notes

NBA officials reportedly are balking at the proposed one-on-one game between Magic Johnson and Michael Jordan, tentatively set for sometime this summer. Johnson said he would still like to play the game, but not if the league disapproves. “We already proposed what we wanted to do, and it’s up to (the league) now,” Johnson said. “The decision is theirs. I came up with the idea last summer. We approached (Jordan’s representatives). He agreed. We agreed. The Fox network was going to do it, but we settled on pay-per-view. But, like I said, it’s (the league’s) decision.”

Mychal Thompson, who played 28 minutes Tuesday night despite continued soreness in his left heel, said Wednesday he is not concerned about the potentially adverse effects of playing on consecutive nights. “If I rest it a week, it’s the same soreness as if I play the next night,” Thompson said. “It doesn’t make any difference how much I rest it. It’s still sore.” Thompson said his heel bothers him most when he tries to play after sitting for prolonged spells.

Reserve center Mark McNamara suffered a severe bruise on the back of his left knee during Sunday night’s victory over the Miami Heat. He had swelling around his knee, but suited up anyway Tuesday night against Phoenix and for Wednesday’s game. . . . The Lakers’ next game is Friday night against the Houston Rockets at the Forum.