FIRST LOOK

Best-of-five series begins Friday

Records: Lakers 61-21, Trail Blazers 46-36

Home Records: Lakers 33-8; Trail Blazers 26-15

Road Records, Lakers 28-13; Trail Blazers 20-21

Season Series: 2-2

Lakers at a glance: They closed the regular season by winning five in a row, 16 of 18 and 22 of the last 25, losing only to Seattle, Utah and Phoenix in that most extended stretch. Shaquille O’Neal averaged 33.8 points over the final 10 outings to make a late run for the scoring title before Michael Jordan held on, 28.7-28.3.

Portland at a glance: Injuries and trades have made lineup stability impossible, but that’s only part of the problem. Unlike last season, when the Trail Blazers closed 25-5, they have lost three of their last five, a stumble that included setbacks against the Grizzlies and Nuggets.

LAKERS, PROBABLE STARTERS

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Pos. Name Ht. Pts Reb F Robert Horry, 6-10 7.4 7.5 F Rick Fox, 6-7 12.0 4.4 C Shaquille O’Neal, 7-1 28.3 11.4 G Eddie Jones, 6-6 16.9 3.8 G Derek Fisher, 6-1 5.8 4.1*

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LAKERS, TOP RESERVES

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Pos. Name Ht. Pts Reb G Nick Van Exel, 6-1 13.8 6.9* G-F Kobe Bryant 6-7 15.4 3.1 F-C Elden Campbell, 7-0 10.1 5.6

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*--assists

PORTLAND, PROBABLE STARTERS

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Pos. Name Ht. Pts Reb F Rasheed Wallace, 6-11 14.6 6.2 F Brian Grant, 6-9 12.1 9.1 C Arvydas Sabonis, 7-3 16.0 10.0 G Isaiah Rider, 6 -5 19.7 4.7 G Damon Stoudamire, 5-10 17.3 8.2*

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PORTLAND, TOP RESERVES

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Pos. Name Ht. Pts Reb F Walt Williams, 6-8 10.3 3.4 G-F Stacey Augmon, 6-8 5.7 3.3 G Gary Grant, 6-4 4.8 3.8*

*--*

*--assists

BACKCOURT

All the talk a year ago was about how Jones couldn’t come close to handling Rider’s size and strength, and then Jones outshot him, 59.3%-37.2%, in the four games and grabbed twice as many rebounds. Stoudamire has struggled with his shot all season, especially since being traded from Toronto back to his hometown just after the All-Star break. Not only that, but the sprained right ankle that cost him what would have been the only meeting against the Lakers as a Trail Blazer, March 11, is still at least a minor hindrance.

FRONTCOURT

That creaking you hear is the two centers taking the floor. O’Neal has been battling injuries since the first day of training camp, but is on one of the best offensive rolls of his career anyway. Sabonis has been battling injuries since the first day of fourth grade. The problem for the Lakers is that he can be stationary and cause problems, as one of the greatest passing centers ever and a three-point threat. The Trail Blazers are one of the few teams who can match the Lakers for size and athleticism at forward. But not depth.

INTANGIBLES

And you thought the Lakers were battling the disease of youth. As Stoudamire said of his own team, after the loss to the Nuggets: “I guess this is the reason why everybody loves to hate the Blazers. We can tease you. We can look so good one day, and the next day we’re not even the same team.” The Lakers know the feeling, but at least not as recently.

COACHES

Mike Dunleavy played for Del Harris with the Rockets and then eventually followed him by doing double duty as coach and executive with the Bucks. Likewise, both have coached the Lakers. Oh, and both have spent this season trying to get their players to realize the importance of each possession, often with frustrating results. It’s enough to make a coach’s hair turn grey (Harris) or fall out (Dunleavy).

THE PICK

The repeat of last season’s first-round matchup previews nothing like last season’s first-round matchup. Portland is not the feared team of a year ago, just as the Lakers are not the unfocused team of seven weeks ago. Lakers advance.