Doc, Any Chance He Can Go Back to the Womb?

Vin Baker, the Seattle SuperSonics’ four-time all-star, is shooting 17% from the free-throw line this season, the lowest in the NBA.

He has never been a great free-throw shooter, averaging only 62% in his five previous seasons in the league, but Baker has hit a new low. He missed his first 18 attempts this season and has made only seven of 42 from the line.

Asked how she would help Baker, psychologist Dr. Joyce Brothers said, “I would ask him for a place where he’s been when he felt warm, comfortable and safe. A beach maybe. He should go to that place in his mind when he’s about to take a free throw and not think about what he’s doing.”

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Add Baker: Brothers said the root of Baker’s problem might be the lockout that kept players off the court for more than three months.

She said going without a job that long gave Baker, in the final season of a six-year, $22-million contract, his first real look at being out of work.

“The strike cost more than just money,” she said. “Vin Baker and the other players have had a period of inactivity and unemployment. Unemployment is terrifying to people.”

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Trivia time: Who has the NBA season record for lowest free-throw percentage?

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He thought football was rough: Former football coach Danny Ford is among those being considered by Democrats to make a run for Congress next year against Rep. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), one of the House managers in President Clinton’s impeachment trial.

Ford said he would consider entering the race in the 3rd District along South Carolina’s western edge.

Ford coached Clemson to a national championship in 1981 and later moved to Arkansas. After five years at Arkansas, Ford tried unsuccessfully to get his Clemson job back last year.

“If Clemson didn’t want him, I don’t know why the voters of the 3rd District would,” said Trey Walker, executive director of the state Republican party.

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No swear zone: Tuesday was National Sportsmanship Day, and the Institute for International Sport, a nonprofit group promoting ethics in sports, announced it was establishing a “No Swear Zone” and campaigning for players and coaches at about 12,000 schools in 101 nations to pledge not to curse.

“I think it’s a pretty big deal because most players do swear on the court and it just takes away from the game,” said Reginald Williams, a 17-year-old from North Carolina who plays basketball for the American Community School in Cobham, England.

There is no word on how many four-letter words broke through the No Swear Zone.

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Trivia answer: Chris Dudley shot 31.9% from the line (58 for 182) for the Cleveland Cavaliers and New Jersey Nets in 1989-90. (According to the Elias Sports Bureau, minimum 125 attempts.)

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And finally: Jay Leno told his viewers that, as fired Laker coach Del Harris departed from the Forum with his pink slip, he encountered the arriving Dennis Rodman wearing one.