MORNING BRIEFING : NBA Finals Have New York State of Mind

Bill Lyon writing in the Philadelphia Inquirer: “Now, much to the surprise of most everyone associated with pro hoops, the Knicks are in the finals.

“It is a nice little campfire story to warm your hands over, one that is hardly unique in sports, but of course since it involves Noo Yawk, you will be invited to believe that it is just the most wonderful thing to occur since the invention of, oh say, the dot-com.

“Anything that happens beyond the shoreline of Manhattan somehow isn’t supposed to count.”

*

Trivia time: Who was the first Angel to hit an inside-the-park home run?

*

Cheap shot: Gary Shelton in the St. Petersburg (Fla.) Times: “Personally, I have faith in Phil Jackson. If he joins the Lakers, I have no doubt he could make Shaquille O’Neal every bit as good as Luc Longley.”

*

What we always wanted: Fans are already placing orders for Milwaukee County Stadium souvenirs, including things such as seats and urinals.

“We laughed about the urinals, but there are sports goonies out there that want them,” said Mike Duckett, executive director of the board overseeing construction of the Milwaukee Brewers’ retractable-roof stadium, Miller Park, due to open for the 2000 season.

*

More stadium: John Shea of the San Francisco Examiner reports that when Miller Park opens, 200 to 300 seats will have obstructed views.

“They’ll be called ‘Uecker Seats’ and be endorsed by Brewer broadcaster Bob Uecker. At a buck a pop.”

*

NBA critic: NBC’s Bob Costas, known for speaking out of the ills of baseball, was asked during a conference call with reporters on Monday what he thought was wrong with the NBA.

“First of all, I’m a big fan of the NBA, and there are a lot of things right with the NBA,” he said. “But it seems nobody can hit the mid-range jumper, there is too much over-coaching, and there is a lack of ball movement. I would like to see the free-flowing beauty of the game return.”

*

Full speed ahead: MSNBC’s Scott Ostler on the Cleveland Cavaliers firing Mike Fratello, master of the deliberate offense: “The owner said he wants the team to go in a new direction. Actually, he wants them to go in the same direction, but twice as fast.”

*

Appropriate: The tarp the Florida Marlins use to cover the field during rain delays has “The Weather Channel” logo on it.

Young swinger: Jacksonville, Fla., high school pitcher Brett Myers, on being drafted by the Philadelphia Phillies:

“I’m thrilled to go to the Phils because they’re an NL club. I like to hit, and chicks dig the long ball.”

*

Trivia answer: Jim Fregosi, Sept. 19, 1962 against Baltimore.

*

And finally: Stanford slugger John Gall, who went three for four with a home run in the Cardinal’s 10-6 victory on Floriday State Monday in the College World Series, recalled last year when the Cardinal was eliminated by Loyola Marymount in the NCAA regionals:

“We lost to a bunch of bleached blonds from Southern California,” Gall told the San Francisco Chronicle. “Did we learn from that? You bet.”

Bleached blonds? Are you sure, John?