Shaq Accepts Limitations

Shaquille O’Neal said he is resigned to playing the remainder of the season at less than 100%, simply because the lengthy rest he needs to allow his strained abdominal muscle to heal will not be available until summer.

“I probably have to take three weeks off, lying in bed, swimming, exercising,” he said Tuesday. “Maybe then it’ll get better.”

Until then, he’ll try to nurse it along, working to strengthen the areas around the injury located above the groin and occasionally sitting out practice to at least reduce some of the wear. This comes as O’Neal has averaged 33.9 minutes--and 29.5 points, 11.8 rebounds and 2.55 blocks--in the 11 games since returning from six weeks on the sideline.

He’s good enough to be a major impact player. Just not good enough to where he can see himself at full strength.

“Our fans have only seen him at 100% the first half of his first season,” Coach Del Harris said of 1996-97. “Hopefully he’ll be able to get up to 100% sometime this season. That’ll be a really big thing for us.”

It’s also something that doesn’t figure to happen.

“Probably not,” O’Neal acknowledged.

*

With O’Neal hurting and Nick Van Exel so concerned about his chronic knee injury that he is unable to say for sure he will play in the All-Star game, the Lakers are planning to send their own strength and conditioning coach, Jim Cotta, to New York to continue the rehabilitation that weekend.

“They do need constant attention,” Harris said. “We can’t just turn them loose.”

The schedule only compounds the concern. The All-Star game is Sunday, the Lakers are set to practice Monday night in Portland, Ore., in their first workout after the break and then play Tuesday against the Trail Blazers and Wednesday at home against the Golden State Warriors. They get a day off after that--and then the Seattle SuperSonics on Friday.

TONIGHT vs. New Jersey

* 7:30

* Fox Sports

West

Site--Great Western Forum.

Radio--KLAC (570), KWKW (1330).

Records--Lakers 31-10, Nets 24-19.

Record vs. Nets (1996-97)--2-0.

Update--The Lakers have swept the two-game series from the Nets each of the last three seasons and start this one by getting New Jersey on the Nets’ second night of a back-to-back. OK, so it began Tuesday against the Nuggets.