Fast Break Leaves Basketball Camp Broke

Buck Passing: The flyer for the Mike Dunleavy Basketball Camp promised youngsters “a basketball experience you’ll never forget.” For a hefty $275 a week ($495 if they camped overnight), young basketball fans would learn to play from a former coach of the Los Angeles Lakers.

No doubt the 120 children who signed up for their “summer of a lifetime” will remember the Dunleavy day camp. It’s been canceled--with no refunds.

Here’s what happened: Dunleavy left town in May to become the $1-million-a-year coach of the Milwaukee Bucks and backed out of the day camp deal.

Next, the Point Richmond, Calif., company that ran the camp went broke and tried to get the Lakers to cough up the money. The Lakers refused, saying they were not involved in the camp.

Fans victimized by defunct camp operator Sportsworld are getting better treatment elsewhere. The California Angels stepped up to the plate with refunds for the 100 children who paid $225 to attend its now-canceled baseball clinics. Golden State Warriors Coach Don Nelson found a new company to run his basketball camps.

Back in Los Angeles, the Lakers are pointing the finger at Sportsworld and ex-coach Dunleavy. “Mike stood to gain if it was successful”--Dunleavy’s cut was $40,000--”he has some responsibility to put the camp on,” said Jim Perzik, Laker general counsel.

Laker spokesman Bob Steiner said the organization feels badly for the children, and if no refunds are provided by Dunleavy or Sportsworld, the team might offer the kids a free game ticket or invite them to a practice to cheer them up.

But Dunleavy contends he’s also a victim. He’s already shelled out around $60,000 to cover the cost of two weeklong overnight camps. “We had a group of 14 kids fly in from Alaska with all these chaperons,” he moaned. “I had to put them up, too.”

Give Them Credit: “One in Seven Los Angelenos Over Their Heads in Debt,” declared a study released this week. The report from Princeton Survey Research Associates concludes that one reason why Los Angeles residents are in so much trouble is because they pay too much interest on credit card balances.

The report--along with a similar study that found Bostonians were also over their heads in credit card debt--was commissioned by American Express, which is in a cutthroat battle with Visa and Mastercard for consumer charge dollars.

American Express is drawing attention to interest expense because its cards are interest-free. (You have to pay off the balance every month.) But what the survey doesn’t reveal is that American Express cards aren’t necessarily less costly. For the one-third of all consumers who pay their balances off monthly, a Visa or Mastercard may be a better deal because the annual fees are lower.

American Express might be cheaper for those who let the interest pile up every month. But don’t rush to fill out a credit application just yet. Said a spokeswoman: “American Express may not be the best choice for them.”

You Thought It Was Simple: The air fare structure announced by American Airlines back in April was hailed as revolutionary, a long-overdue simplification of an unwieldy and confusing pricing system. But that’s not what happened.

The Official Airline Guides, a New York-based firm that tracks air fares, said that a week before American’s April announcement, it counted 2.7 million domestic fares in effect. On Thursday, the OAG reported a whopping 3.4 million domestic fares.

Making Scents: Mennen Co. says it makes the only deodorant strictly for teen-age girls. Boxed in scratch-and-sniff packages, Teen Spirit roll-on comes in such scents as “baby powder soft” and “California breeze.”

Though the product is youthful, the price is very grown-up. We found a 1.5-ounce Teen Spirit roll-on at Vons’ Pavilions for $2.45, 10 cents more than what Mom has to pay for the adult version.

Ginny Dotzauer, marketing vice president for Mennen Personal Products, said that’s not what her company intended. “The suggested retail price for both products is the same,” she said. “If the price is different, it is at the discretion of the retailer.”

Apparently, there’s a lot of room for discretion, and a quick survey showed Vons isn’t the only retailer that knows how to use it. Dotzauer said Mennen’s suggested price is $1.99 to $2.09.