Magic Says He'll Return to Lakers, but Not Olympics

By SCOTT HOWARD-COOPER

March 4, 1996 12 AM PT

TIMES STAFF WRITER

The Magic mystery tour, all but at the end of the line the day before, lost what little suspense remained Sunday. Earvin Johnson said he plans to play again next season.

Only Magic could commit seven turnovers--one fewer than any teammate all season--miss six of 10 shots from the field and four of 10 from the line during a 111-107 loss to the Houston Rockets in a Sunday matinee before 17,505 at the Forum and still leave the Lakers and their fans feeling good.

Seemingly in one motion, Johnson dropped out of the running for one of the final two Olympic spots and reaffirmed his intentions to return for 1996-97, saying, “I’m planning on coming back.” The two decisions are actually linked--he pulled the plug on the Olympic aspirations in part to spend time with his family, an indication he plans to be busy when training camp starts, and in part to be rested and ready by that first week of October.

“I’m setting things up for next season,” he said.

Johnson, and all the Lakers, hope this season lasts through mid-June. Practice for the Olympic team starts July 1, the day he becomes a free agent, and the basketball competition for the Summer Games runs until Aug. 3, should the United States reach the gold-medal game.

Eleven days later, he turns 37. Even younger players lamented in 1992 that they didn’t have sufficient time to recharge for camps after the Barcelona Olympics ended the same first week of August, so Johnson apparently has eliminated that as a concern.

“It’s the right decision,” he said. “I would like to play, but it’s the right decision.”

The Olympic announcement, leaving Mitch Richmond, Shawn Kemp and Jason Kidd as the leading contenders for the two spots, was something of a surprise. He had very much wanted to play and USA Basketball was certainly interested, especially since Johnson’s play during the comeback proved he would be an effective part of the team and not merely a novelty based on personality and past accomplishments.

The announcement that he plans to return next season, however, was hardly a no-look pass. He all but made that final declaration the day before, telling The Times, “I’m heading in that direction,” while moving up his original timetable for a decision.

No, it’s not true that Olympic officials asked him to bow out after seeing his performance in Sunday’s nationally televised game against the Rockets. He labored for the 14 points and had three more turnovers than assists, eight to five, while playing only 26 minutes because of time restrictions imposed by the team’s medical staff.

At least he looked smoother than Friday, the first game back from a nagging calf injury.

There are other, bigger problems for the Lakers. Against the Rockets, they missed 13 of 36 free throws in a four-point loss. Vlade Divac had nine points, three rebounds and five fouls in 27 minutes. His counterpart, Hakeem Olajuwon, scored 29 points on 12-for-17 shooting and 13 rebounds, both game highs.

Then there was the Rocket bench, the biggest problem of all.

Sam Cassell came in questionable because of an inflamed right elbow, then played 40 minutes, was 10 for 16 shooting, three for five on three-point tries, and finished with 24 points and 11 assists, more than any Laker on both accounts.

Kenny Smith, who earned a visa from Coach Rudy Tomjanovich’s Siberia to return to the rotation when his four consecutive fourth-quarter three-point baskets helped beat the Lakers eight days earlier in Houston, made his first five this time. He finished six of seven, seven of 12 overall and left, with Laker blessings, after scoring 21 points in 27 minutes.

Smith’s heroics, part II, came at the expense of a defense that came in having held five consecutive opponents to less than 100 points, but this was no shredding by the Rockets. They were so precise with quick passes as to beat the good rotations that started after the Lakers double-teamed Olajuwon inside.

Said Laker guard Eddie Jones, who had 20 points and seven rebounds while playing a career-high 48 minutes: “You’ve got a great post player [Olajuwon]. We have to go down and double. Once he passes out, they move the ball as well as anyone in the league.”

Smith’s final three-point basket gave the Rockets a 105-98 lead with 1:48 left. The Lakers answered with Elden Campbell’s dunk, but Houston came back with another three-point possession, this time with Olajuwon converting a layup, getting fouled and making the free throw.

Laker hopes remained until the final minute. Nick Van Exel’s two free throws with 52.9 seconds left, the last of his team-high 21 points, cut the deficit to four, and they had a chance to get even closer when Robert Horry missed at the other end. But they failed to score on the next possession, ending the comeback bid.

That, in turn, gave the Rockets the season series, 3-1, after being swept by the Lakers in 1994-95. It also earned Houston the tiebreaker and homecourt advantage in the first round of the playoffs should the teams finish with the same record, actually making L.A. three games behind in the Western Conference standings now.

Laker Notes

Houston’s Hakeem Olajuwon, a Dream Team center and first-time Olympian, on the decision by Magic Johnson to withdraw from consideration: “He played for the first Dream Team, so now he gives some young guy an opportunity. I think it is a good thing. Someone else can have his dream now.” . . . Laker Elden Campbell had 17 points, 11 rebounds and four blocked shots, giving him four consecutive double-doubles for the first time in his career.

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Magic Marker

Tracking Magic Johnson’s comeback:

SUNDAY’S GAME

*--*

Min. FG FT Pts. Reb. Ast. 26 4-10 (.400) 6-10 (.600) 14 7 5

*--*

SEASON AVERAGES

*--*

Min. FG% FT% Pts. Reb. Ast. 25.2 .474 .776 14.1 5.7 6.7

*--*

CAREER AVERAGES