Stay in First Is Short for Lakers

All that excitement about the Lakers moving back atop the Pacific Division?

Forget it. In their first night defending first place, the Lakers were dead on arrival here Wednesday, buried by Benoit Benjamin and his new SuperSonic friends, 114-106.

Benjamin scored 28 points, making 10 of 13 shots.

Meanwhile, the Trail Blazers beat the Clippers, 100-96, and leapfrogged over the Lakers, back into first place by a half-game.

Since the Lakers’ seven remaining road opponents have only one team (Sacramento) with a worse record than Seattle, you could say this was a game they needed.

You couldn’t tell by watching. They were outrebounded, 27-12, in the first half and trailed by 27 points in the middle of the third quarter.

Only then did they stage a furious comeback, storming within 106-102 with 2:06 remaining.

File it under “Too little, too late.”

Said Laker Coach Mike Dunleavy: “It was a very disappointing game. Effort-wise, we were very soft. Benoit Benjamin just lived in the paint. It was the best I’ve ever seen him play. Best position I’ve ever seen him get, too.

“We were playing him with Vlade (Divac) and coming (double-teaming) on a read situation. But we could have sent the whole stadium at him and it wouldn’t have made a difference, with the position he had.

“Vlade was soft. Mychal (Thompson) came in and Benoit still got position.”

Let’s put it this way, the big guy was due.

He started the night averaging 14 points and nine rebounds for the SuperSonics. However, Seattle was 1-6 since he signed his $17.7-million contract. In his last two games, he had scored a total of nine points, shooting three for 11.

“You have your ups and downs,” he rumbled gently before the game. “It’s been a fresh start. It was good for me to get away from the Clippers. We had 112 wins, 298 losses in my career.

“The fans here are great. I mean, they appreciate what you’re trying to do. They’re not fickle. They’re not with you one moment and then the next. . . . There’s a lot of pressure playing in L.A. They try to compare you with the Lakers and there’s no comparison. L.A. is a Laker city, that’s just the bottom line.

“I endured some hell in L.A. L.A.’s a tough city to play in when you don’t win. They bury you, the press.”

Aside from that, he loves L.A. Really.

“Benoit’s very talented,” Thompson said. “When he’s in the right situation and inspired, he’s one of the five best centers in the game.”

How often is he inspired?

“Well, that’s the problem,” Thompson said. “That’s what separates him him from Hakeem Olajuwon and Patrick Ewing.”

There was nothing separating Benjamin from the greats Wednesday, when he and the SuperSonics forced the Lakers to chase them. The Lakers almost caught them.

Remember that 29-point lead the Lakers rubbed out here in the 1989 playoffs? It seemed as though the SuperSonics did.

With Magic Johnson missing the last 16 minutes because of sore knees, James Worthy and rookies Tony Smith and Elden Campbell helped the Lakers put together a big closing rally. Smith made all six of his shots and scored 12 points. The seldom-used Campbell had six points and five rebounds.

But when the Lakers drew within 106-102, Byron Scott missed a three-point shot, the SuperSonics rebounded and ran a fast break, and Eddie Johnson tipped in Ricky Pierce’s miss.

So much for first place for this go-around.

Laker Notes

Magic Johnson on his sore knees: “I probably could have played but I couldn’t be very aggressive and you might as well have an aggressive man out there.”