Be Patient, Laker Fans; This Was a Good Deal

Here are a few considerations not made by all the uninformed whiners upset about the Shaquille O’Neal deal:

1. Jerrys Buss and West have secured the player with the greatest potential of all available free agents and met the team’s most glaring need. Remember, O’Neal has been in the NBA only a few years and has his career ahead of him.

2. Shaq will, undoubtedly, have access to the best tutor a Laker center could have--Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

3. Ticket prices, considerably below the NBA average, were raised more than a month before the signing and were going up regardless. Stop looking to blame everything on the big guy.

4. Be patient. The youngest team in the NBA has the nucleus of greatness for years to come. If you want a championship yesterday, go buy a Bulls cap. If you believe in the future, wear the purple and gold proudly.

JERRY GELB

Tujunga