New Deal Leaves Lakers in Good Position

For the Lakers, the end of the NBA labor war probably means two presumably comforting things:

Elden Campbell won’t be around much longer; and Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal, even if they wanted to, probably won’t leave for many, many years.

Not much else was clear in the murk of Wednesday’s cease-fire, and there are plenty of other intriguing issues left for the Laker brass to settle before camps open in two weeks--about Jan. 18--and this long-delayed season begins in the first week of February.

But with some degree of cost certainty apparently locked into place and a roster full of young talent, the Lakers suddenly seem to be one of the few winners in the deal.

“Given that the Lakers have a core group of very good players,” said Arn Tellem, agent for Bryant and one of the leaders of the union’s hawkish wing, “they are well positioned for the next 10 to 15 years--certainly 10 years--to be one of the elite teams of the league.”

Which veteran free agents, if any, can the Lakers sign? Does the new deal give the team enough salary-cap wiggle room to re-sign free-agent forward Rick Fox?

What will Bryant’s position be? After dumping Nick Van Exel, is the team chemistry properly calibrated for a run at an NBA title? Is a short season a proper way to judge Coach Del Harris in the final year of his contract?

Can the mainstay players, who have not been practicing together during the lockout nearly as often as their rivals on the Utah Jazz, get to speed in the quick--10 days to two weeks--training camp in time for the season?

Hours after the NBA’s longest summer finally ended in labor agreement, Jerry West, Mitch Kupchak and Harris met Wednesday afternoon with the Lakers’ immediate personnel questions still unanswered and lockout rules still precluding public comment until the deal is official.

Here, though, is what was emerging for the Lakers:

* They have been planning to trade Campbell, whom Harris is convinced cannot successfully share the floor with O’Neal, since the end of last season, and have been prevented only because of the lockout.

Though no exact timetable has been announced, several sources said they expect the NBA to begin a trading period sometime next week, preceding the beginning of camp and a free-agent signing period.

The Lakers usually hold training camp in Hawaii, but spent Wednesday examining the possibility of a quick camp in Palm Springs, Santa Barbara, San Diego or L.A.

* The highlighted aspect of the labor deal--establishing maximum salaries for all players--is perfectly suited for the Lakers, whose two marquee players, O’Neal and Bryant, both can test the market at season’s end.

O’Neal’s cap number for this season is $12.857 million. Though he has the option to tear up the remaining five years of his contract, he is already over the $11-million maximum for a player of his salary, so therefore would have no financial reason to become a free agent.

Interestingly, O’Neal’s agent, Leonard Armato, was one of the key players in forging the labor deal.

Bryant, coming to the end of his three-year rookie deal, could command a salary of no more than $9 million in the 1999-2000 season.

Under the old agreement, he might have been able to command a $15-million-per-season contract that the Lakers could not have afforded while also paying O’Neal huge money.

“Obviously, this does put a ceiling [on any new Bryant salary],” Tellem said. “But first and foremost, I want to say that Kobe’s going to make the best of whatever the situation is. He loves being with the Lakers. He’s enjoyed immensely his experience with the Lakers and very much wants to stay a Laker, and his concern is not money.

“He’s going to make enough money--his concern is winning championships. That’s why he came here in the beginning, and the money will take care of itself.”

* The Lakers probably will have a better chance to re-sign Fox, a valuable role player last season who turned down better money to sign a one-year, $1-million deal with the Lakers.

Fox is looking for a multiyear deal, and his representative, Mark Portnoy, said he believes he will get offers from several teams, including the Atlanta Hawks.

“I know the Lakers would like to have Rick return, and hopefully they can make some changes to be able to make Rick an offer that he deserves,” Portnoy said Wednesday.

* The addition of another one-year salary-cap exception for about $1.75 million gives the Lakers a shot at picking up a key middle-rung free agent, possibly with an eye toward signing that player to a long-term deal down the road.

Point guard Kevin Johnson and forwards Derrick Coleman and Loy Vaught are potential candidates; a wild possibility would be Scottie Pippen, who obviously could get a far richer deal but might be lured for the one-year exception if there was a multiyear deal waiting behind it.

“Teams like the Lakers and Indiana are very well positioned and able to use the exceptions to add some very good middle-range players,” said agent Steve Kauffman. “I know if I had a player they were interested in, they’d be one of the teams I’d be looking at hard.”

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

LAKERS AT A GLANCE

Players under contract (nine): Tony Battie, Corie Blount, Kobe Bryant, Elden Campbell, Derek Fisher, Robert Horry, Eddie Jones, Shaquille O’Neal, Sean Rooks.

Unsigned rookies: Sam Jacobson, Tyronn Lue, Ruben Patterson.

Key free agents: Rick Fox, Mario Bennett.

First order of business: Try to find a taker for Campbell, whose seven-year, $49-million contract has a kicker clause that makes it go even higher if he is traded.