Another Lineup Change Still Possible

One lineup change down, one to go?

The notion of making Jerome Kersey the starting small forward, thereby allowing Eddie Jones to return to the backcourt, has occurred to Coach Del Harris, but for now the Lakers figure to go with the same first five as in Friday’s victory at Detroit. That’s when Harris went for the first switch, putting Rumeal Robinson in the opening lineup at shooting guard and sending a struggling Byron Scott to the bench.

“There’s a good chance,” Harris said of planning to keep the lineup intact, “because we just won the last game. Call it superstitious if you want. But in a way, aren’t all people in athletics? Really, though, it’s not superstitious because I’m not going to wear the same suit. But if we have just found a way to win the game, why not stay with it?”

Perhaps because most every time Kersey has played, mixed in between the injuries that have kept him out for 11 of the 17 games, he has made a positive impact. And because Jones would be a boost for a backcourt desperate for decent shooting.

The option comes because Kersey, after being a bit out of shape at the start of camp and then struggling to get in game condition because of two injuries, proved Friday he could play starter’s minutes without getting winded. The 34 against the Pistons even surprised him, especially since he thought earlier in the day he would not play because of the strained Achilles’ tendon that had already cost him the first two games of the trip.

Harris, though, likes the idea of having a spark off the bench at a time when the play, and the opportunities, of most every other reserve is inconsistent, so there Kersey will stay. The 34-year-old free-agent signee has added value in this area because he can also play power forward when the Lakers go small.