For Lakers, the Chase Is Different

The free-agent chase has come to the Lakers again, just not as it did a year ago, for which Jerry Buss’ wallet and Jerry West’s nerves are thankful.

The most lucrative offer they can make to a player other than their own is $2.15 million over two years--about the lunch tab during the 1996 pursuits of Shaquille O’Neal, Elden Campbell and Sean Rooks. But that should still be enough to make a significant addition in the name of depth, keeping in mind how the year-old collective bargaining agreement is forcing so many players to accept the minimum.

In the meantime, the raiders have become the protectionists.

“Our main focus is to retain our own free agents,” General Manager Mitch Kupchak said. “That’s the No. 1 priority.”

The Lakers have four who were in the 1996-97 playing rotation. A fifth who was there for the briefest of times, George McCloud, has said he will not return, not that his now-former team will try too hard to change his mind.

Among the other four, Travis Knight is the most difficult to anticipate. He wants to come back and the Lakers want to bring him back. The problem is money. They can offer him only $326,750 for 1997-98 because of a salary-cap technicality, allowing other teams to bid higher.

It will take a multiyear deal in seven figures to get Knight even to consider leaving. But then, there will be such an offer. It might also include the chance to start, something that would happen with the Lakers only because of injury.

“All we can do is everything we can do,” Kupchak said. “All the agents are familiar with the rules. There’s no hidden agendas. There’s no games. There’s no one posturing.

“We’re optimistic that we’ll have a realistic chance to sign him back. But we do, from time to time, look at our depth chart and think, ‘What if?’ ”

So it’s enough of a concern.

Robert Horry, the starting small forward, would be the biggest loss, but, barring a mega-bid from elsewhere, he isn’t going anywhere. The Lakers have never exactly stinted on re-signing players, so it’s probably only a matter of agreeing on terms, and Horry says he isn’t looking to break the bank. With other teams aware of that, another serious bid may not even be made.

Jerome Kersey and Byron Scott are in the same contractual predicament--$326,750--as Knight because the Lakers are over the salary cap. So they will listen to other offers.

Complicating the situation for Scott is the uncertainty over whether he will get any offers.

The Clippers also have five free agents. That number quickly becomes four, however, because Dwayne Schintzius is a certain goner. The others are Malik Sealy, Kevin Duckworth, Rich Manning and Bo Outlaw.