Jackson Not Simmering About Setbacks

Phil Jackson, noted coach and philosopher, chose to wear a white chef’s shirt during Laker practice Thursday.

“It’s a tunic,” he corrected everybody, before describing why he had donned this one.

“It’s just about ingredients,” he said. “Trying to find the right ingredients.”

Losers of three of their last four, the Lakers have been stirred and souffleed with and without Shaquille O’Neal.

The Lakers’ once-comfortable lead in the Pacific Division is now a one-game deficit to Sacramento. Their next game is Saturday at San Antonio, their third in a row without O’Neal, still serving a suspension, but it’s not all bad news on the horizon: At least the Lakers won’t be playing a last-place team.

The Lakers have lost to four last-place teams since Dec. 21, including a 102-96 loss at home Wednesday against Miami.

Jackson, calmly answering questions in his culinary tunic, didn’t seem unsettled.

“It’s the attrition of a season. It’s what you go through,” he said. “We’re not concerned at this period of time.

“I don’t think this team suffers from an inferiority complex or from the fact they’ve fallen from grace. They’ll be fine.”

Jackson said the Lakers were merely outmuscled against Miami, Alonzo Mourning making 12 of 17 shots for a season-high 28 points.

“The physical beating that goes on in the course of that [Miami] game, we needed a guy Shaq’s size’” Jackson said. “We had nobody with girth except Mark Madsen out there.”

Jackson doesn’t expect a muscle tussle against the Spurs.

“I’m not so sure outside of [Tim] Duncan that you’re going to see that they overwhelm you with their size,” Jackson said. “[David] Robinson can block. They’re long and their extension is long, but it’s not the size and the muscularity that beats you in San Antonio games.”

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O’Neal left for Newark, N.J., on Thursday to attend the funeral of his grandmother, Irma Harrison, who died Saturday. Harrison’s funeral will be this Saturday. O’Neal is expected to return Monday.

Mike Bresnahan