THE NBA / MARK HEISLER : Riley Has a New Project: Find Locker Room Rats

The Fugitives: Somewhere, two desperate men cringe, listening for the sound of hounds on their trail, to be followed by a blinding searchlight and a voice on a bullhorn: “Come on out! We know you’re in there!”

It’s the Knicks’ Truth Squad.

These are dark days, what with two cowardly, sniveling anonymous Knick players telling the New York Daily News that Coach Pat Riley’s 99-point-a-night offense lacks imagination.

This followed losses to the Orlando Magic and Philadelphia 76ers in which Riley continued to pound the ball in to Patrick Ewing in crunch time. In Orlando, Shaquille O’Neal blocked Ewing’s shot. Against the 76ers, Jeff Hornacek stole the pass to Ewing, saying later he knew it was coming.

Said Knick Player A: “We’re a much better team than what we’ve shown. But we’ve got some guys who are worried about their scoring averages first.”

Added Player B: “Patrick’s a great player, but he’s not the only one who can score. We’ve got an offense that everybody in the world knows where the ball is going 90% of the time. We’ve got to be more versatile.”

Anywhere else, it would barely be news if a couple of guys were grumbling. The Chicago Bulls went off on Phil Jackson and each other almost daily while winning their three titles. Doug Christie recently spent a couple of weeks critiquing Randy Pfund’s “stagnant” Laker offense. Christie was undoubtedly reminded to tell Pfund in person or zip it up, but Pfund didn’t have minicams waiting in his driveway and everyone got over it.

But this isn’t New York, where the Daily News ran a headline in type normally reserved for events like the bombing of Pearl Harbor that screamed:

TEAM TURMOIL

Not to be outdone, the Knicks reacted as if the two critics had sold atomic secrets to the Russians.

Despite Riley’s strenuous efforts to contain them, breaches of solidarity occurred, if rarely, in his Laker heyday. But in New York, where he’s a demigod and his players relative faceless minions, his teams have become impenetrable. Any compromise of confidentiality, much less a criticism of Riley, himself, is considered a betrayal.

Last spring, Riley became enraged at a mild NBC report that Knick veterans had talked him out of sending Greg Anthony home from the West Coast after the Phoenix brawl.

Riley snarled that any player who talked to NBC’s Peter Vecsey was “a gutless . . . “

Now personally targeted for the first time as a Knick, Riley circled the wagons at a team meeting, co-chaired by personnel director Ernie Grunfeld.

Said Charles Oakley, laughing: “I just want to know who did the talking. But it’ll get out. It’s like the FBI. You gather the clues and come up with suspects.”

Said a coldly angry Riley: “We came into the meeting to try to bring out the truth and some honesty within the team. . . . If in fact there’s a problem, then it will be ferreted out in the locker room. People know how I feel about that.”

The New York Post headline on this story:

KNICKS: WE’LL FIND LOCKER ROOM RAT

That night, the Knicks barely beat Phoenix at home, 98-96. The Suns were without Charles Barkley, Kevin Johnson and Danny Ainge.

Said Riley afterward: “We have the most boring, unimaginative, predictable offense in the history of basketball, but I’ve got six championship rings because of the center position. I had an opportunity to win one as a player with Wilt Chamberlain. I had an opportunity to coach Kareem (Abdul-Jabbar) and I am blessed to coach Patrick Ewing and to pass the ball in to him every single time. I will go to my grave being predictable.”

He also didn’t play Anthony Mason against the Suns, leading to the suspicion that he was punishing him for being one of the rats--uh, sources.

Mason denied it. The Post ran his head shot the next day but without an accompanying profile, perhaps because it didn’t think of it.

As to the merits of this case, as Ewing noted, “Who in this league isn’t predictable?”

Indeed, the Suns go to Barkley in crunch time, the Houston Rockets to Hakeem Olajuwon, the Magic to O’Neal . . . .

Of course, it might still be asked why Riley is so casual about establishing Charles Smith, the badly needed third option to Ewing and John Starks. Ewing doesn’t want to play underneath anyway, so why not put him on the wing and post up Smith? Smith had 25 points against the Suns and in the next game, got six shots.

Suggestion to Smith: If anyone asks about it, take the Fifth Amendment. The Truth Squad is watching you, too.

MIKE’S COUNTDOWN CONTINUES

Chicago White Sox brass, which had been politely cool to the idea of letting Michael Jordan try out in spring training, has been told, 1. He’s coming, and 2. Shut up about it.

Manager of the year Gene Lamont, perhaps reminded that White Sox-Bull owner Jerry Reinsdorf fired Doug Collins after he had made the conference finals with the Bulls, fired Jeff Torborg after consecutive second-place finishes with the White Sox, and axed Tony LaRussa, is no longer saying it isn’t in anyone’s “best interests” for Jordan to attend.

Said Lamont last week: “Every indication I get is that he’ll be there.”

General Manager Ron Schueler, the former pitcher, did throw some breaking pitches to Jordan, who presumably had trouble with them.

Said Schueler diplomatically: “I’m not sure a lot of big league hitters are ready to look at a curveball this time of year.”

Bottom line: The professionals fear the damage a Jordan circus can do to morale, but Reinsdorf is ecstatic. The White Sox, longtime second fiddles to the cross-town Cubs, now own the Chicago papers and talk shows. White Sox exhibition games in Sarasota, Fla., are almost sold out.

“The first day, they were lined up for half a mile,” said Nick Lucas of the Sarasota Sports Commission. “The only seats you can find now are way out toward right field.”

Jordan’s baseball credentials, such as they are, are being scrutinized. He didn’t play after his junior year in high school but in three years of Babe Ruth ball, according to his coach, who kept the stats, he hit .260. A big league prospect at that level normally hits .500. But maybe Mike is a late bloomer.

In Jordan’s book, “Rare Air,” he says he was offered basketball and baseball scholarships by Clemson, South Carolina and Mississippi State.

The Chicago Sun-Times contacted the baseball coaches of all three. None had heard of Jordan at the time.

“I did all the recruiting,” said then-Clemson Coach Bill Wilhelm. “I had all the contacts. I coached there for 36 years. I would have heard about Michael if he had considerable baseball prospects.”

Unfazed, Jordan notes he’s still in demand.

“I’ve had other offers,” he said. “If the situation doesn’t work out with the White Sox, other people have offered me the opportunity to come and try out.”

Mark this date on your calendar: Feb. 15. Pitchers, catchers and Jordan report.

Jordan will wear No. 45. Robin Ventura won’t give up 23 (so far).

THERE’S A PLACE FOR THEM

If a tree falls in the forest, some of the debris will find a Clipper.

How does one account for Pauley Pavilion and the Forum escaping earthquake damage but the Sports Arena having to close for a week? Call it Clipper karma.

It’s nice to report they took it graciously.

“This is the Clipper world tour, man,” said Tom Tolbert. “We’re going down to the San Diego Convention center after this. We’re going to see how many arenas we can play in. Set an NBA record or something.

“Figure we hit the Anaheim Convention Center. We got the Forum and the (Anaheim Arena) Pond. What else can we get? We can get Pauley maybe. (UC Irvine’s) Bren Center. We’ll try to work ‘em all in. We’ll try ‘em all for the heck of it, see how many fans we get there.”

The Clippers didn’t like the Forum, where they weren’t allowed to display their team logo, dressed in the visitors’ room, drew the hall’s smallest crowd this season and lost soundly to Cleveland.

However, they were treated royally at the Anaheim Arena, where they sold 17,507 tickets in two days and were cheered wildly, for a change, in a thrilling loss to the Knicks.

Clipper officials still insist that someone will build them an arena downtown or in the San Fernando Valley, but they’re in the process of blowing their chance to take over Los Angeles while the Lakers are down. In a couple of years when they’re rebuilding, a beautiful building in a demographic- rich area will look good, even if Donald Sterling’s chi-chi comp list has to deal with freeways.

If they’re fans, they’ll come. Billy Crystal was at Anaheim. So was Pia Zadora. Clipper basketball! It can happen somewhere!

FACES AND FIGURES

The all-star voters’ selection of B.J. Armstrong to the East team, not to mention the starting lineup, is--how shall we put it?-- wrong. So was the selection of slowed-down, oft-injured Clyde Drexler in the West. The other choices were OK, even if Karl Malone deserved better than a sixth-place finish behind Antoine Carr and four other West forwards. The other East starters are Shaquille O’Neal, Derrick Coleman, Scottie Pippen and Kenny Anderson. The other West starters: Hakeem Olajuwon, Charles Barkley, Shawn Kemp and Mitch Richmond.

The East coaches should add Patrick Ewing, Horace Grant, Charles Oakley, Dominique Wilkins, Mark Price, Mookie Blaylock and Reggie Miller. In the West: David Robinson, Malone, Cliff Robinson, Christian Laettner, John Stockton, Rod Strickland and Latrell Sprewell. . . . Sorry to Kevin Johnson (missed too many games), Alonzo Mourning (third-best center on a two-center squad), Chris Webber (a fixture starting next year), Joe Dumars (it was close with Miller), Isiah Thomas (sayonara after 14 straight), Gary Payton (it was close with Strickland and K.J.).