Pippen Could Take Some Tips From the Way Mailman Works

Late in the fourth quarter of Utah’s 124-94 rout of the Chicago Bulls on Friday night in Salt Lake City, Jazz forward Karl Malone returned to the game.

Yelled Chicago Coach Phil Jackson: “Hey, Mailman! Aren’t you padding your (scoring) average a little bit?”

Replied Malone: “No. When my coach tells me to go in, I go in.”

Scottie Pippen overheard the exchange and his ears must have been burning.

*

Trivia time: How many Pacific 10 Conference schools have played in the Cotton Bowl game?

*

Menacing snake: Ernie Els, the U.S. Open champion, encountered an unconventional hazard on the tee of the 16th hole of the Nashua Wild Coast Challenge tournament on Sunday in Wild Coast, South Africa. As Els stepped off the tee, a three-foot night adder appeared out of the long grass and headed in his direction. The South African star player stepped to the side and moved quickly in the opposite direction.

Good thinking.

*

Escape: Horace Grant, a former Chicago Bull forward, has found happiness with the Orlando Magic. “I’ve never been more relaxed in my life,” he said. “It was never like this in Chicago. (General Manager Jerry) Krause made it impossible. The way they treated people there--not just me, but others, too--was horrible.”

*

Clip and save: Bob Jacobsen in the Arizona Republic: “Mark this down. The Los Angeles Clippers will not win 10 games this season.”

*

Philadelphia story: Frank Lawlor in the Philadelphia Inquirer: “Shawn Bradley, the ex-missionary man and the swizzle-stick center of the 76ers, is the latest major focus of the venerable Philadelphia custom known as booing. “During player introductions on opening night, he was booed the moment his reddish head popped through the tunnel entrance. He hadn’t even played for nine months, so basically he was getting booed for having been injured twice.”

*

NFL wisdom: From Blackie Sherrod in the Dallas Morning News: “Question: What do Jack Thompson, Phil Simms and Steve Fuller have in common?

“Answer: They’re all quarterbacks drafted ahead of Joe Montana in the ’79 flesh market.”

*

Trashing Houston: Dan Shaughnessy in the Boston Globe on why the defending NBA champion Houston Rockets don’t get more respect: “There’s year-round heat and humidity, an airport about 100 miles from downtown and the building with the most sports tradition is Elvin Hayes’ car dealership.”

*

Trivia answer: Two. Oregon, with Norm Van Brocklin, lost to Southern Methodist, 21-13, in 1949, and UCLA beat Arkansas, 17-3, in 1989.

*

Quotebook: John McEnroe, on the downside of his tennis career: “You remember being the best, and anything else is unacceptable.”