Some Good News on a Bad Night

The end result was another humbling performance, but the Lakers’ second unit did get a relative lift Saturday night against San Antonio from the returns of Rick Fox and Derek Harper after short absences.

Harper, who had been held out of the last four games because of a foot problem and because Coach Kurt Rambis wanted to refresh him for the playoffs, played 19 minutes backing up Derek Fisher at point guard, and had three assists and two points.

“Obviously, it isn’t about me tonight,” Harper said, “but I felt good. It was good to get out there.”

An MRI Friday on Fox’s right knee found no serious damage, so Fox flew to San Antonio on Saturday, suited up for the first time in four games, and played 17 minutes, scoring four points on two-of-six shooting.

“I liked what I saw in Harp, he brought a lot of energy and effort,” Rambis said after the game.

“Rick seemed to be testing it a little bit, a little bit unsure. But that’s the nature of coming back from an injury.”

*

Shaquille O’Neal, who has dominated David Robinson his entire career, watched Robinson score 15 first-half points on outside jumpers. Robinson, though, scored only one point in the second half. “I wasn’t having trouble,” O’Neal said. “He’s a dangerous guy. If you get up on him close, he tends to drive. I was letting him shoot. Every time he scored, I tried to go down and make him play some defense too. In the second half, he didn’t shoot the ball so much.” . . . Saturday’s game marked play-by-play man Chick Hearn’s 3,100th consecutive Laker broadcast.