Kings Set to Take Best Shot at Lakers

Only three teams defeated the Lakers more than once this season. Houston did it, and so did San Antonio and Portland. Sacramento did not.

Even so, some observers who are not sold on the Lakers think the Kings, who lost three of four games to the Lakers, have a realistic chance of an upset in their first-round NBA playoff matchup.

Their reasoning is simple. They believe that Sacramento matches up well against Shaquille O’Neal and the rest of the Lakers, which is supported by the confidence of the Kings themselves.

“We know we have our work cut out for us, but I think our team feels that if we play to our capabilities, we can be competitive against anybody,” Sacramento Coach Rick Adelman said.

“We did play four close games against them.”

True. Although the Lakers finished 23 games ahead of Sacramento in the Pacific Division standings, the Kings made the Lakers fight for their lives when they met.

What makes the Kings a different type of opponent for the Lakers is their passing. Behind big men Chris Webber and Vlade Divac, the Kings love to pass the ball. Sacramento led the league in scoring at 105 points a game and finished fifth in assists with 23.8 a game.

Even though they were 1-3 against the Lakers, the Kings outscored them 103-102.8, and lost three games by a total of 11 points. With power forward being the Lakers’ Achilles’ heel, Webber had his way during the regular season, averaging a team-high 27 points and 11 rebounds in four games.

“With Divac and Webber throwing passes and [point guard] Jason Williams obviously creating that kind of open flow, they are a very unique team,” Laker Coach Phil Jackson said after one game against the Kings.

Because neither Webber nor Divac is reluctant to move outside and shoot from the perimeter or pass to the open man, Sacramento makes the Lakers play a different defense.

O’Neal has been a force in the middle all season, but against the Kings he loses some of his effectiveness because he often is drawn outside to cover one of their big men, who have enough versatility to create problems.

This tactic worked to perfection the first time the teams played, on Dec. 8 at Sacramento. With Kobe Bryant only a week into his season after having been sidelined because of a broken right hand, the Kings ran the Lakers ragged.

Sacramento won, 103-91, after mounting a 17-5 run in the second quarter. Webber led the Kings with 20 points and 12 rebounds, but Sacramento had five scorers in double digits. The Kings’ bench did the most damage, Predrag Stojakovic scoring 19 points and Lawrence Funderburke getting eight of his 10 in the second quarter.

But the Kings got that victory while the Lakers were still getting their new act together. The next time the teams met, March 12 at Staples Center, it was a different story.

The Kings led by 12 points in the fourth quarter, but the Lakers blitzed them with a 21-5 run and Sacramento went almost five minutes without a basket. After the score had been tied, 100-100, O’Neal and Bryant combined for five consecutive points and the Lakers won, 109-106.

In the third meeting, March 26 at Sacramento, the Lakers scrambled for a 90-89 victory. The Kings’ Darrick Martin missed a late free throw and O’Neal came up with a three-point play and a game-saving rejection of a shot by Divac.

O’Neal and Bryant proved to be the difference once again when the teams played April 14. They combined for 72 points as the Lakers overcame an 11-point first-quarter deficit and won, 121-114, at Staples Center. O’Neal finished with 41 points, getting 18 of them in the fourth quarter.

Still, the Kings remain confident.

“The playoffs are a whole different entity,” Adelman said. “Sometimes, you play teams during the regular season and it depends on the schedule and other factors. But once you get in the playoffs, both teams are going to be ready to play. . . . You have to believe that with Shaquille and Kobe there and how competitive they are, [the Lakers] are going to play at a very high level and we have to respond to that.

“But I do think that our guys feel, and I feel, that if we play well, we’re going to be in the games and anything can happen. We’re a pretty good offensive team and it is going to come down to . . . how we execute offensively and how we defend them.”