THE NBA : Divac’s Goal: Change for Better

Vlade Divac shrugs and says he is not politically inclined. Either that, or the Lakers’ rookie center simply chooses not to go on the record about the upheaval in his native Yugoslavia.

Divac said he is aware of his country’s recent decision to switch to a multiparty political system after 45 years of Communist rule. He also said he is concerned about the violence in the wake of a general strike in the southernmost province of Kosovo.

But Divac stopped short of passing judgment on the changes. He is here, he said, to play basketball.

“I’ve read it in the papers, and I believe my country has done very good,” Divac said. “Now, every country in Eastern Europe has broken their economic system. Yugoslavia has a big problem with (its) economy.”

Croatia and Slovenia, two of Yugoslavia’s six republics, will hold elections as early as May. Divac lives in Serbia, which has remained Communist.

Divac said he is apolitical.

“I don’t know,” he said, when asked whether a multiparty election system would help Yugoslavia’s economy. “I would just like the people of Yugoslavia to live good.”

Unlike Divac, Warrior guard Sarunas Marciulionis is politically outspoken, favoring secession from the Soviet Union for his native Lithuania.

“There are many good changes going on in the Eastern Bloc right now, and I like it,” Marciulionis recently told a reporter. “Lithuania has changed since I left. There is a fresh air there. People have a new feeling, and it will be difficult for the Soviets to take it away.

“Before, they showed only the good (in official news reports from the Soviet Union). Now, the people in the United States can see there is good and bad there. It no longer is a secret.”

As a form of affection between player and coach, the noogie is not nearly as popular as the traditional handshake and the high-five.

But when Don Nelson of the Warriors recently won his 600th game as an NBA coach, Warrior forward Rod Higgins pinned Nelson to the floor of the locker room, and players took turns administering noogies. For the uninitiated, a noogie consists of vigorously rubbing another person’s scalp with one’s knuckles.

The 600th victory, coming Jan. 21 over the Celtics in Boston, was special to Nelson for other reasons. The Warriors had not won at Boston Garden since 1978, and Nelson said it was fitting that he achieved the milestone in the city where he played.

Nelson, 49, is the second-youngest coach to reach 600. Former Celtic coach Red Auerbach won his 600th on Nov. 26, 1960, at 43.

Seattle’s Dale Ellis, charged with drunk driving and reckless driving after a recent accident in which he suffered a punctured lung and three broken ribs, lost his driver’s license for one year and, if convicted, could face a one-year jail term.

Although Ellis has had 12 moving violations and been arrested three tines, SuperSonic management has not taken any disciplinary action against the club’s leading scorer.

Bob Whitsitt, the SuperSonics’ president, explained why.

“I’d be foolish to say we condone what happened,” Whitsitt told the Seattle Times. “You want all of your players to understand their responsibilities. But I also understand them as young adults growing up.”

At 29, Ellis is the oldest SuperSonic player.

Commissioner David Stern may have taken the friendly wager between Philadelphia’s Charles Barkley and New York’s Mark Jackson seriously--Stern fined each player $5,000 for joking that they had a running bet about which player would make his team’s winning shot--but Barkley’s teammates did not.

The day after the fines were imposed, an unidentified 76er taped notes on Barkley’s locker that read: “Charles the Greek,” “The Black Pete Rose,” “Casino Entrance” and “Three-to-One Odds Charles Sits Here.”

Jim Lynam, coach of the 76ers, tore the signs down before Barkley saw them. “Please,” Lynam sighed. “I’ve got enough problems.”

One last note on Karl Malone’s omission from the Western Conference All-Star team’s starting lineup, as voted by the fans:

Since the voting system is set up for provincialism among fans and Utah’s John Stockton received enough votes to earn a starting berth at guard, there has been speculation that Malone’s absence might be racially rooted.

Malone is black, Stockton white. Salt Lake City is predominantly white. Neither Malone nor Stockton addressed that possibility. Stockton, however, said something is amiss with Jazz fans who voted for him but not Malone.

“I have a little trouble being too thrilled knowing that the same people who selected me didn’t put Karl Malone on it,” Stockton said. “It’s like not putting Michael Jordan on the East side. It’s absurd.”

Malone is the NBA’s second-leading scorer behind Jordan.

Pete Babcock’s ouster as general manager of the Nuggets did not upset Denver Coach Doug Moe, who apparently did not work well with Babcock or former owner Sidney Schlenker.

“There was no one in charge,” Moe said of the Nuggets under Babcock. “Nothing against Pete, but I don’t think anyone told Pete what to do. I want to see the franchise succeed, and things had gotten to such a point that Sidney had to sell it or they would’ve lost it. It couldn’t keep going. I mean, it was gone.”

Babcock might be gone, but he is still being paid. He will make $400,000 a year for the next 5 1/2 years. However, Babcock and the Nuggets are negotiating a buyout so that Babcock can join the Atlanta Hawks as head of player personnel and scouting.