Rambis Becomes Second-Guesser

Upon further review, Coach Kurt Rambis said he probably shouldn’t have kept Shaquille O’Neal on the sidelines for the Lakers’ last offensive possession against Phoenix on Friday.

After the game, O’Neal suggested that the Lakers didn’t trust him in tight, late-game situations.

Rambis said Friday that he wanted to avoid the Suns’ immediately putting O’Neal, a 54.5% free-throw shooter this season (and five for nine Friday), on the free-throw line.

“It probably was a wrong decision of mine,” Rambis said Saturday. “He is our money guy. He is our go-to guy. He is the one who’s going to make or break us in the playoffs. And he’s the one who has to come through and deliver . . .

“That’s his responsibility as a leader of the ballclub, that’s his responsibility as a superstar. He just has to step up and do his job. In that case, I was probably wrong.”

But Rambis said he would probably continue to go with a smaller defensive unit in similar situations to make sure the Lakers can rotate quickly and switch on all screens.

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Forward-center J.R. Reid, whose playing time has ranged from slim to none as a Laker, scored 14 points in 14 minutes Friday and said he’s following the advice of Dean Smith--his college coach--and just trying to make the most of his opportunities.

“-I haven’t been seeing a lot of minutes lately, but I talked with Coach Smith and my attitude is to stay positive,” Reid said. “Just keep playing, make them put me in. That’s what I’m trying to do.”

Reid said he, Sean Rooks, Robert Horry and Travis Knight understand that Rambis has little time for the backup big men.

“Oh, he’s got a terrible situation, he’s got a deep team,” Reid said. “We’re all professional about it.”