Building Around a Shaq Doesn’t Require Magic

The Lakers have done pretty well with superstar centers. . . .

They won five NBA championships with George Mikan, five with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and one with Wilt Chamberlain. . . .

It is time to sign another. . . .

Dikembe Mutombo doesn’t fit the description. . . .

Shaquille O’Neal does. . . .

The Lakers’ chances of landing him are better than you might think. . . .

He loves L.A., where he has a home and is pursuing an acting career between seasons. . . .

The Orlando Magic can afford to pay O’Neal more than the Lakers because of salary cap rules, but his quality of life wouldn’t suffer terribly if he relocated to the Forum as a free agent. . . .

The Laker offer would be more tempting if it included a few million dollars that might otherwise have been spent on Magic Johnson. . . .

At this stage of his career, Johnson would fit in better with Pat Riley and the Miami Heat than with Del Harris and the Lakers. . . .

At Miami, Johnson would be the point guard and Riley would let him run the show. . . .

Magic’s role with the Lakers still hasn’t been defined after 32 regular-season and four playoff games. . . .

There would be no such problem with O’Neal. . . .

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Maybe these aren’t the worst of times for thoroughbred racing, after all. . . .

It currently boasts two of the most remarkable performers in sports--four-legged Cigar and two-legged Wayne Lukas. . . .

Cigar has won 14 consecutive races and Lukas has trained the winners of six consecutive Triple Crown races. . . .

For the second year in a row, Lukas won the Kentucky Derby with an overlooked horse. . . .

Last May, Thunder Gulch paid $51. . . .

On Saturday, Grindstone would have paid much more than $13.80 if he hadn’t been coupled in the wagering with the more highly regarded Editor’s Note. . . .

It was the most exciting Derby in years, a duel between two brilliant jockeys, Jerry Bailey and Grindstone rallying to overtake Chris McCarron and Cavonnier at the wire. . . .

Too bad ABC didn’t stay with its coverage instead of going to a commercial with the outcome of the photo finish still in doubt. . . .

Southern California-based horses dominated the Derby, finishing 1-2-3-4. . . .

Another outstanding training job was done by Bob Baffert, whose Cavonnier came within a nostril of being the first Cal-bred to win the Derby since Decidedly in 1962. . . .

The bottom line on the latest of the beaten favorites, Unbridled’s Song, is that he couldn’t handle the 1 1/4-mile distance. Forget all the excuses. . . .

For a while Sunday, I thought the Detroit Red Wings were going to outscore the Portland Trail Blazers. . . .

Portland exceeded Michael Jordan’s single-game NBA playoff scoring record by one point. . . .

The Lakers played 86 games without an overtime this season. . . .

Atlanta deserved to win the series, but Indiana, with Reggie Miller back in the lineup, probably would have been a more formidable opponent for Orlando in the next round. . . .

The 11th annual Pacific Coast League Historical Society reunion will be May 18 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Carson Community Center. Among former players scheduled to attend the event, which is free to the public, are Chuck Stevens, Roger Osenbaugh, Jack Graham, Max West, Bob Dillinger, Roger Bowman, Joe Stanka, Jim Baxes and Hy Cohen. . . .

Look for the Galaxy to be on the road next Cinco de Mayo. . . .

First City vs. Second City: On Sunday, the Chicago Bulls beat the New York Knicks, the Yankees beat the White Sox, and the Cubs beat the Mets. . . .

The Angels are learning how to win consistently at home, where they are 11-2. Last season, they were 39-33 at Anaheim Stadium and 39-34 on the road, including the American League West playoff loss at Seattle. . . .

Montreal outfielder Henry Rodriguez, the former Dodger, has hit 12 home runs this year after hitting 21 in his previous 278 major league games. . . .

The well-balanced Detroit Tigers are last in the American League in pitching and 12th in hitting. . . .

Tom Lasorda will have a decision to make when Ramon Martinez comes off the disabled list. Whom does the manager remove from the Dodger starting rotation? Pedro Astacio and Chan Ho Park are pitching better than Tom Candiotti. . . .

Just call the Dodgers the hitless wonderlesses.