Jackson Might Be Interested in Wizards’ Austin

Coach Phil Jackson on Saturday repeated that he would like to acquire another big body to back up Shaquille O’Neal and acknowledged some interest in Washington Wizard center Isaac Austin, but said no serious discussions have taken place.

The Washington Post reported Saturday that one of Michael Jordan’s first moves as president might be to trade Austin.

“He’s a prototype of what we were kind of hoping to have as a backup center--6-10, mobile kind of backup center,” Jackson said of Austin, who is in the first year of a three-year, $15.7-million contract.

“But right now . . . that hasn’t been addressed in those terms.”

Jackson said that having the best record in the league should not preclude the Lakers from making moves that would help them for playoff time and in the long term.

“Chemistry is important as an ingredient, but you also have to be realistic about what we have as far as backing up power players,” Jackson said.

“We don’t have a lot of poundage on this team. After you get rid of Shaq, there’s not a whole lot of big bodies on this team to go against the big-bodied teams like, you know, Portland, San Antonio, Utah, who just added Armen Gilliam . . .

“So we could use another big body, no doubt.”

O’Neal played another 47 minutes in the Lakers’ loss to Portland on Saturday, and had only four points and only two rebounds in the second half.

“I wish I could say I’d be very comfortable playing with this roster, but who knows?” Jackson said before the game.

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Jackson said he didn’t nudge Kobe Bryant, the defending champion, into turning down his invitation to the All-Star Game slam-dunk competition, but said he was glad that Bryant did.

“I just said do what you have to do. Do what you want to do, do what you feel comfortable doing,” Jackson said.

“That can be a very draining weekend. Not only the attention that you have, but also the number of events that you participate in. It can be extremely difficult for players to recover after that. Players go into a dip or into a dive after a loss of energy after a weekend like that.

“I think it’s a smart move for him. . . . He’s taken a wise decision probably at this time, decided to step back a little bit and let things happen for him in an easier way.

“It gives him the energy we’ll need because we start out a six-game road trip right after that [and] it’s going to be very demanding.”