No Such Thing as Free Lunch

Phil Jackson grinned and Shaquille O’Neal glowered and, well, if there is a crisis out there somewhere, it must be basketball season in Los Angeles.

The afternoon after Jackson called O’Neal’s free-throw shooting “scary,” causing O’Neal to wonder if a couple of NBA titles weren’t enough to satisfy Jackson, the two shared a dais at the team’s Tip-Off Luncheon.

If they were going to have it out, a banquet room at the Westin-Bonaventure Hotel seemed as good a place as any.

At the microphone, Jackson played it goofy, Shaq played it straight, and everybody had a good laugh. Other than Shaq.

“He’s been in a bad mood ever since that toe operation,” Jackson told the assembled Laker fans before turning to O’Neal. “But, first of all, people would like to know about your health. And, finally, Laker fans would like to know, could you relieve some of the anxiety from us by [making] your free throws.”

Laughter.

“First,” O’Neal said, “I’d like to thank everybody for coming out.”

Applause.

“I was upset,” O’Neal said. “I was so upset, I didn’t even hear the question Phil asked me. That’s how upset I am.

“I’ve been here for a long time. I haven’t let the city down yet, and I promise I won’t let you down in the future, going on No. 3. I’ll hit ‘em when I have to hit ‘em. Thank you and I love you all. Ladies, you really look beautiful.”

He grinned.

It is unclear if O’Neal is very angry with Jackson, though he seemed it Tuesday night, or if he had hoped to avoid all free-throw talk for a while longer, at least until he discovered a stroke, and so is a bit miffed.

In true Jackson style, he did not faint away at the sight of a public disagreement. In fact, he whipped up an old issue with Kobe Bryant in the moments before airing O’Neal’s, first mentioning that Bryant’s game appeared to grow in the final weeks of last season.

“He got married, in fact, he felt so mature,” Jackson said. “Any time you do that, you know you have to share a lot. So, I felt really good about Kobe’s decision.

“Last year, he matured during the playoffs by unleashing all the cannons in the San Antonio series and then backing off and making sure we had the right direction in the Philadelphia series, getting the ball into Shaq, where our strength is. I thought that was real mature of him.”

Of course, that wouldn’t end it.

“He’s always going to find a way to shine, there’s no doubt about this guy,” he said. “Kobe, this year, do you think you can make it through the year without getting bored?”

Since everyone was being honest ...

“You know,” Bryant said, “the triangle does win championships in June. But, December, January, it’s boring as hell.”

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Rick Fox, back on the all-star ballot for the first time in years, has had a training camp to justify it.

He arrived a month ago strong and trim, at 32 afraid to let his body go for fear it might never return. He took his usual defensive posture, then averaged 9.5 points in the first six exhibition games, including 21 Tuesday.

Fox has made nine of 16 three-point attempts.

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The Lakers play the Milwaukee Bucks tonight at 8 at Staples Center. The Phoenix Suns and Golden State Warriors play at 5. Friday, the Bucks play the Warriors at 5, followed by the Lakers-Suns at 8.