He’s Not Looking Ahead

The Miami Heat and the Lakers are one week from playing at Staples Center, a well-known fact among both franchises and both cities.

Or is it?

“I didn’t even know it was next Saturday until you told me,” Laker Coach Rudy Tomjanovich said Friday with a straight face.

A one-game-at-a-time proponent, Tomjanovich said he wouldn’t think about the Heat and its new center until the Lakers were through with Washington, Memphis and New Orleans.

“That’s the whammy right there,” Tomjanovich said. “You never look ahead, ever. It’s like not putting on your underwear in the morning. You’ve got to do first things first.”

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Forward Brian Grant continues to recuperate from lingering knee problems and hopes to return to practice Sunday.

Grant has been on the injured list since Nov. 23, when the Lakers activated Vlade Divac and assigned Grant to an indefinite period of rest and rehabilitation.

Grant, 32, averaged 4.5 points and 3.3 rebounds in nine games, well below his career averages of 11.4 points and eight rebounds before this season.

Grant’s right knee had been hurting because of severe tendinitis, but his left knee was also sore because of overcompensation.

“I’m not taking [anti-inflammatories] and that’s the major thing,” he said. “I could tell you I’m taking stuff and they feel good, but I’m not taking anything and haven’t taken anything for a month. They feel much, much better than they did in training camp when I started taking stuff.

“It’s been a long time [off]. It’s been a very helpful time for me.”

Grant wants to play next Saturday against Miami, where he spent the last four seasons.

If he is activated, he would be another post player to throw in the general direction of Shaquille O’Neal.

Grant missed only 16 games with the Heat and rarely missed practice, although he said he expected to miss various practices throughout the season.

“There’s still going to have to be a modified-type thing where I choose my spots as far as with practicing and [resting],” he said.

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Backup point guard Tierre Brown, on his fourth team in as many seasons, is averaging 4.5 points and 14.8 minutes, both career-bests. He had 15 points in the Lakers’ 115-99 victory Thursday over Sacramento. Said Tomjanovich: “I love to see players growing. This guy’s a great story. He’s taking advantage of the opportunity. Tierre’s bounced around a lot.” ... Barry Bonds sat courtside at Friday’s game against Washington and was in the Laker locker room before the game.