Horry Injures Abdomen Again

Robert Horry took a wrong step while rushing back on defense Sunday, limped for a few steps and then crumbled with 9:55 left in the third quarter. He eventually got up and hobbled to the locker room, then returned to the Laker bench with about seven minutes remaining in the period, but stayed there the rest of the game.

After the team had first called the problem a strained abdominal muscle and Horry followed by saying it was actually a slight hernia, further tests have apparently pinpointed the injury as a troublesome vein in the groin area. So delicate is the problem that it was aggravated Saturday when he sneezed before practice, setting the stage for Sunday’s more painful result.

“Let me tell you how I feel [today] and I’ll let you know if I’m worried or not,” he said.

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The Lakers--losers of three of the last four games and two in a row, to prime Western Conference rivals at that--are down. And Charles Barkley is wearing steel-toed boots.

“When a really good team comes to town, you hammer their [butt],” Barkley said. “I think the Lakers still might be a little shell-shocked after the Seattle game. . . . The other night, I think the Lakers took a step backward.”