Record-Tying Beat Goes On for Lakers

The Lakers carved another notch on their gun belt Sunday night, this one so deep it reached all the way to yesterday.

Knocking on history’s door, they ultimately opted to kick it in, dismantling the Vancouver Grizzlies, 121-95, before 17,139 at the Forum and tying the record for the best start in franchise history at 8-0.

The chance to knock the 1987-88 club off the pages comes Tuesday at Utah, a game that would have been emotional enough for the Jazz faithful as the first visit by Shaquille O’Neal since he got slap-happy with Greg Ostertag. Consider the Laker stakes extra fuel for them.

And consider this a running start:

The Lakers shot 58.1% against the Grizzlies, with Nick Van Exel going nine for nine overall and six of six on three-point shots for 24 points and Eddie Jones making 10 of 12 attempts, a struggle by comparison, while scoring 28 points. That they played only 28 and 31 minutes, respectively, meant that another assault on the record books was spared, not to mention the opponent.

“I would have to say that’s probably the best I’ve shot the ball since I have been in the league,” Van Exel said. “Definitely.”

The Lakers not only tied the record for best start, but also matched their longest winning streak since February 1996, the best mark of the Del Harris era. Tuesday at the Delta Center also brings the opportunity for their most impressive run since the days after Magic Johnson’s first retirement in November 1991, when they won nine in a row.

Vancouver did its best to lure the Lakers into a letdown, or at least to get them looking ahead, considering the impending trip to Salt Lake City should present a far greater challenge. The Grizzlies may have played well enough Saturday to beat a Milwaukee team off to a good start, but this was still the second night of a back-to-back. And they were without starting center Bryant Reeves because of a sprained ankle, so Coach Brian Hill went for 6-foot-9 Ivano Newbill at center against O’Neal, and presumably the rosary beads.

The Lakers didn’t fall for it.

“I said we want to avoid thinking anything like that,” Harris said of his pep talk. “I gave them that analogy about how you don’t want to think about alligators for a while and then the first thing that pops into your mind is something green and ugly. I told them to focus on what it takes to win and play our game and give respect to the value on one, which is what this game represents.”

Newbill got off easy, but he was about the only one. O’Neal took only two shots in the first half and the Lakers still had a 15-point lead after only 6 1/2 minutes en route to a 38-point opening quarter and then led by 21 at intermission. They shot 66.7% from the field in that time (24 of 36), with Jones making nine of 10 shots for 22 points. Then came the handoff.

What Jones did in 19 first-half minutes, mostly with a series of slicing moves to the basket, Van Exel accomplished in far less time after the break. He had an advantage, though. He was counting by threes.

After making both attempts from behind the arc in the first-quarter sprint that allowed the Lakers to turn the game into a laugher--O’Neal’s massive hand covering Van Exel’s shaven head in the fourth period, massaging away--Van Exel hit four more without a miss in the third, including three in as many possessions. After the last, which produced a 34-point advantage, he jogged downcourt and blew on his fingers, the way a gunslinger would blow the smoke from the tip of his six-shooter.

“I had to cool off,” he said. “Want to save some of it for Utah.”

Still, there was important business at hand for the Lakers--the return of Kobe Bryant, who had missed three games because of a sprained ankle. He played 16 minutes.

O’Neal, meanwhile, played 29 minutes in an off night in many ways (eight shots, 14 points, five rebounds). The Lakers said they were not concerned that he is still bothered by tenderness in his abdominal muscle, saying it’s normal for that injury and could linger for several months.

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BEST L.A. LAKER STARTS

1987-88: 8-0

Won NBA championship

1997-98: 8-0

Two of last three victories in OT

1980-81: 5-0

Lost to Houston in first-round of playoffs

1985-86: 4-0

Lost to Houston in conference finals

1971-72: 4-0

Won 33 in a row, NBA championship

BEST NBA STARTS

* 15-0: Washington (1948-49)

*Houston (1993-94)

* 14-0: Boston (1957-58)

* 12-0: Seattle (1982-83)

*Chicago (1996-97)

* Won NBA championship