Lakers Complete a Texas Two-Step

Their season nearly a quarter gone, the Lakers turned away from questions of their superiority Thursday night, ducked the rising sense of inevitability, moments after beating another good team, on another foreign floor.

The Dallas Mavericks fell, 114-103, at American Airlines Center, a night after the San Antonio Spurs went. Over seven days of basketball reassurance, the Lakers twice beat the Spurs, and routed the Indiana Pacers, and then became the first team to win in the Mavericks’ gym.

Shaquille O’Neal scored 25 points and took 19 rebounds. Kobe Bryant flung himself at an unprotected rim and scored 32 points, 12 from the free-throw line. Gary Payton had 17 points and Karl Malone 11. The Mavericks, a perimeter team that can’t shoot straight, made 37.4% of their field-goal attempts. Steve Nash had season highs in points (30) and lip stitches (two), the latter from a blow by Malone, Nash buzzing too close after a Malone rebound.

The Lakers are 16-3. They have won eight in a row and 11 of 12. They are developing a feel for their personalities. Among the oldest teams in the league, the Lakers are 3-1 in the second of back-to-back games.

Considering everything, Phil Jackson said, “Everything looks good for our team to succeed.”

The winning streak is their longest since they won nine straight two years ago, amid their 16-1 start. That was a team that knew itself, knew its parts and won an NBA title. This is a team that two months ago wore name tags.

“I don’t think we’re talking about statements,” Malone said. “We’re talking about winning ballgames.

“I don’t know if it’s that easy, but guys are doing the things to put us in a position to win games. Now we look back on those three games we lost and wish we could have those over.”

Dallas forward Dirk Nowitzki could not play because of a sprained ankle. Partly as a result, the Lakers went out hard and fast, O’Neal getting 12 points and six rebounds in the first quarter, which saw the Lakers ahead, at one point, by 17 points.

The Mavericks did not recover. They lost their fifth consecutive game to the Lakers and their 46th game in 51.

Asked afterward about the state of the Laker-Maverick rivalry, Bryant said, “There’s no rivalry between us and them.”

Next question.

Into that leaned an arena packed with painted faces and frantic expectations.

The Mavericks fell behind, 25-8, and one could imagine the sense of injustice hoisted upon Mark Cuban, Don Nelson, the players, the fans, the ushers.

At halftime, Cuban found a team employee and demanded, “Where’s Ed Rush sitting, do you know?” Rush is the NBA’s director of referees.

In the third quarter, Nelson was ejected for screaming at referee Tony Brothers, which brought his second technical and the automatic shuffle to the locker room, this one to a standing ovation.

The Mavericks are hamstrung by their soft and undersized inside players, Shawn Bradley being soft and everyone else being undersized. After O’Neal’s big first quarter, the Mavericks committed two players to him away from the ball -- which left the lane open for Bryant and other cutters.

“Whenever you’ve got guys who are 7-6 that don’t want to play, you take it inside,” O’Neal said about Bradley.

At various times the Mavericks sent Eduardo Najera, Antoine Walker, Bradley, Antawn Jamison and Danny Fortson at O’Neal. Then they drew straws. Best two out of three. Volunteers. The biggest lead was 19.

The Lakers tried to enjoy it. O’Neal dunked and Payton pretended to take his picture. You know, for posterity. Or, the poster.

The Mavericks played along. In the fourth quarter, Cuban poked fun at O’Neal’s, uh, girth.

“Hey, hey, hey,” the sound system screamed. “It’s Sh-a-a-a-q Albert!” Above, on the video screen, O’Neal’s head crowned the old Bill Cosby character.

O’Neal stood at half court, bent at the waist and howled. Ahead, at the free-throw line, Bryant dissolved into laughter. The Lakers on the bench pushed themselves backward in their luxury, Mark Cuban-provided cushy chairs and all but cried.

By then, with four minutes left, much of the crowd was gone. And the Lakers went laughing into the night.

*

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX)

Controlling Interest

Mark Cuban’s purchase of the Mavericks was ratified on April 11, 2000.

How the Lakers have fared against Cuban’s Mavericks:

*--* DATE SITE RESULT Dec. 3, ’00 at Staples W, 99-97 Dec. 22, ’00 at Dallas W, 108-103 Feb. 20, ’01 at Dallas W, 119-109 March 30, ’01 at Staples W, 98-89 Dec. 5, ’01 at Staples W, 98-94 Feb. 3, ’02 at Dallas W, 101-94 March 17, ’02 at Staples W, 105-103 March 19, ’02 at Dallas L, 114-98 Nov. 19, ’02 at Dallas L, 98-72 Dec. 6, ’02 at Staples W, 105-103 April 3, ’03 at Dallas W, 100-89 April 8, ’03 at Staples W, 108-99 Oct. 28, ’03 at Staples W, 109-93 Dec. 4, ’03 at Dallas W, 114-103

*--*