Notes on a Scorecard - Feb. 5, 1991

Here’s a switch. George Foreman wanted to talk to his sports idol, Magic Johnson. So I was going to give Foreman’s phone number to Magic in the locker room after the Laker-Chicago game Sunday at the Forum. But I couldn’t. Magic was knocked out. . . .

Mike Dunleavy’s first season as Laker coach has been full of surprises. “I didn’t expect us to start 2-5 or to win 15 in a row,” he said. . . .

The Lakers are limiting opponents to an average of fewer than 100 points a game. If they do it for the entire season, it will be their first time since 1954-55 in Minneapolis. That was the last season before the 24-second clock. . . .

Among the reasons for the big “D” in L.A. is the shot blocking of Vlade Divac. . . .

“Vlade started off slowly because he had played for Yugoslavia before the season and reverted to some bad habits,” said Pete Newell, who conducts the big man’s camp that Divac attended before his rookie year. “They play defense in Europe mostly with their arms, and they play a lot of zone. He had become too passive.” . . .

More Newell on Divac: “He’s getting better and more confident every day. Now he doesn’t have to worry that he’ll be taken to the woodshed if he makes a mistake.” . . .

The Lakers’ last defeat was 96-88 in Seattle Jan. 8 when they played without Magic Johnson, who was resting a jammed finger. . . .

Those hesitant to jump on the bandwagon point out that 10 of the Lakers’ 15 victories in a row have been over teams with losing records. . . .

Newell on Dunleavy: “He’s doing a terrific job. You can be good with the X’s and O’s, but the bottom line for any coach is his relationship with his players, his feel for people. Mike doesn’t let his ego get in the way.” . . .

Look-alikes who watched the game Sunday: Bill Cartwright and Thomas Hearns. . . .

The directors of the Hall of Fame have done something Pete Rose couldn’t--win sympathy for him. . . .

My all-Plan B free-agent team on offense--Wide receivers: James Lofton, Richard Johnson. Tight end: Mark Bavaro. Interior linemen: Doug Smith, Crawford Ker, Billy Ard, Mark May, Russ Grimm. Quarterback: Mike Tomczak. Running backs: Roger Craig, Ottis Anderson. Kicker: Matt Bahr. Punter: Maury Buford. . . .

Defense--Linemen: Tim Krumrie, Doug Reed, Mike Bell. Linebackers: Jerry Robinson, Eugene Lockhart, Matt Millen, E.J. Junior. Cornerbacks: Steve Brown, Clifford Hicks. Safeties: Ronnie Lott, Leonard Smith. . . .

Coach--Buddy Ryan. General Manager--Don Klosterman. . . .

Lockhart would be a good pickup for the Rams. . . .

Do you realize that the Buffalo offense averaged nearly a point a minute in the Super Bowl? The Bills scored 17 points during the 19 minutes they had the ball. Their two other points were scored by the defense. . . .

The second half of the Pro Bowl actually was entertaining. . . .

The new Hollywood Park boss, R.D. Hubbard, is getting out of the starting gate quickly by restoring the old lakes-and-flowers theme. . . .

Pete Axthelm should be remembered not as a television sportscaster, but as one of the finest sportswriters of our time. . . .

UCLA’s demolition of Pittsburgh showed a national television audience just how strong the Pacific 10 Conference is. . . .

I’d still like to see Rodney Zimmerman, the Bruins’ 6-foot-9 freshman center, get more playing time. . . .

Penn State and Florida State are doing very well in football recruiting, but Notre Dame not so hot. . . .

The capable Jim Hefner, who had been at USC since 1966 as assistant basketball coach and then assistant athletic director, has joined the Forum boxing department. . . .

It’s a trade of sorts between the Trojans and alumnus Jerry Buss--Hefner for Mike Garrett. . . .

If he ever wanted to change jobs, Buss could become a sports talk-show host. He sounded very much at home last Tuesday pinch-hitting for Gabe Kaplan on “Sports Nuts” on KLAC. . . .

Lou Duva, who manages Evander Holyfield, recalls trying to recruit football players to become heavy-weight fighters when Muhammad Ali was champion. “Andy Granatelli was going to put up the money and Rocky Marciano was also involved ,” Duva said. “One guy we were interested in was Mike Battle, the defensive back who played for USC and the (New York) Jets. But then Rocky died in that plane crash and the project was dropped.” . . .

Promoter Don Chargin believes that Hector Lizarraga, a 22-year-old featherweight who has won 13 consecutive fights after a rocky start and will box next Monday in Fresno, has world-championship potential. . . .

George Foreman said: “I like to play basketball, George II plays for his high school team in Sacramento and George III and George IV and George V are going to be good players. One day, we’re going to have our own team and call it Georgetown.”