Jones Silently Quiets All of His Vocal Critics

So that is what Eddie Jones looks like when he’s mad:

Driving past Isaiah Rider, leaping toward the rim, fouled by the lunging Portland Trail Blazers.

Three times in the game’s first three minutes.

So this is what Eddie Jones sounds like when he’s talking back:

Bouncing behind picks, weaving up from under the basket, spinning and swishing from behind the three-point line.

Twice during the game-deciding run.

So this is how a quiet man responds to opponent’s taunts and public rips:

He calls for the ball.

After being passive during the week since his postseason toughness was first questioned, Eddie Jones finally opened his mouth Sunday afternoon in Game 2 of the first round of the NBA playoffs.

He called for the ball.

It was one eloquent answer.

A playoff career-high 21 points. One missed field goal in six attempts. Perfect on a trio of three-pointers. Big steals. Hustling rebounds.

Respect even from you-know-who.

“Eddie Jones got himself going today,” said nemesis Rider, who outscored him but did not outwork or outplay him. “He played very well.”

And very different.

Where Jones was a non-factor on offense in the playoff opener--leading to criticism that such play will eventually get the Lakers beat--on Sunday morning his plan changed.

From the moment he began shooting jumpers in a nearly empty arena 2 1/2 hours before tip-off, it changed.

Said assistant coach Larry Drew: “We talked to him about not being passive on offense. We wanted him to start getting the ball and looking at the rim.”

Said Jones: “I knew I had to create something.”’

So he did, driving the lane the first three times he touched the ball, scoring on free throws each time, setting the tone for a quick 11-point lead that set the tone for the game.

A couple of hours later, by the time he stalked off the court for the last time, the crowd was hoarse from chanting “Ed-die, Ed-die.”

Eddie? He saved his talking for later, in the locker room, during a well-deserved postgame bask.

“I’ve got a lot of pride,” he said. “My whole life, everybody has always said ‘Eddie can’t do this, Eddie can’t do that, I’m better than you.’

“I’ve always been proving them wrong.”

So it went again Sunday with, among others, his targets being Rider and those newspaper hacks who wrote that Rider had earlier kicked his rear to Hollywood Park and back.

“I don’t listen to people who don’t know anything about basketball,” Jones said. “Some people out there saying stuff, they haven’t shot a basketball in a gym in 30 years.

“People who know basketball, they know I’m not just focused on scoring, that I play a team game.”

That he was the team’s second-leading scorer and percentage shooter during the regular season, however, cannot be ignored in the postseason.

When Jones is aggressive offensively, that prohibits teams from triple-teaming Shaquille O’Neal.

This is particularly true during the playoffs, when there is a special need for Jones to touch the ball.

On Sunday, he did a lot of that, and more.

“It was like he came out and said, ‘This is going to be a different game,”’ teammate Rick Fox said. “To hear the bad talk about him, it was good he was able to turn it into good talk.”’

It may have turned into something even better than that. Amid all this ruckus, the locals have made Jones more than just a popular player.

He has become a crusade.

Their consistent “Ed-die” chants--followed often by a “Rider [stinks]” chant--has made him more of a Forum focus than even Jack Nicholson.

“Even from before the opening tip, those fans were really trying to help Eddie,” Rider said. “And tell you what, today, they did a good job.”

As for his special cheer, Rider was so intimidated, at one point, while standing on the court during a Laker free throw, he danced to it.

“I know I don’t [stink],” he said. “So I danced.”

Jones shrugged. This is new territory for him.

Not just playoff stardom, but the playoff spotlight. Not just the questions, but the need to answer.

When he left the game to another thunderous ovation, to all that chanting, he shyly smiled.

When asked questions afterward, he looked at the floor and said he couldn’t wait to get home and play with his daughter.

“Sometimes in this game, it’s important for me to be the aggressor, to be even a little selfish,” he said. “That is hard, because I’m not a selfish player, but sometimes you have to do it.”

Sunday was one of those days, and it was all good.

Selfish looks nice on him. Selfish looks right.

Eddie Jones keeps calling for the ball, and by next week, Forum fans will have to change their chant.

Payton (stinks) . . . Payton (stinks).

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

Key Matchup

Comp a ring Eddie Jones to Portland’s Isaiah Rider in the first two games of the playoffs: GAME ONE

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Category Jones Rider Points 14 25 Rebounds 7 2 Assists 0 3 Turnovers 2 6 Blocked Shots 6 0 Steals 3 0

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GAME TWO

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Category Jones Rider Points 21 24 Rebounds 3 2 Assists 1 4 Turnovers 2 4 Blocked Shots 0 0 Steals 3 1

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TOTAL

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Category Jones Rider Points 35 49 Rebounds 10 4 Assists 1 7 Turnovers 4 10 Blocked Shots 6 0 Steals 6 1

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