Would the Aquacagers Get Along Any Better?

It’s generally known that the Lakers got their name because they used to play in Minnesota, the land of 10,000 lakes. But who was responsible for the name?

Robert Wold, the Minneapolis Lakers’ public address announcer from 1947 to ‘49, set out to answer that question last year. Now a consultant for David Kohler’s new privately owned Lakers Shrine museum in Laguna Niguel, Wold solicited the help of Bob Berger, the son of Ben Berger, one of the two original owners of the Lakers.

They tracked down Nancy Frank Goldstein at her home in a Minneapolis suburb and learned her father, Ben Frank, won a $100 bond in 1947 for coming up with the name.

Goldstein, who was 3 at the time, said her mother also entered the contest, submitting the name Aquacagers.

Good thing Mom didn’t win the contest.

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Trivia time: Fred Schaus became the Lakers’ coach after they moved to Los Angeles in 1960. Where had Schaus been coaching?

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Shaq’s attacks: Before the Lakers played at Denver on Wednesday, Shaquille O’Neal told reporters that General Manager Mitch Kupchak needed to take notes from him, adding, “If I was general manager of this team, there would be no problems.”

The next day on XTRA, O’Neal took what could be construed as a shot at owner Jerry Buss. Singing the praises of George Steinbrenner, O’Neal told Steve Hartman and Mychal Thompson, “Steinbrenner is a true general manager. He’s a true owner because he gets it done. Period.”

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King-sized incentive: Look for what Charles Barkley said on TNT Thursday to make its way back to the Sacramento Kings.

“Back in my day, we used to say when we played a bad team that we would beat them 100 times out of a 100,” Barkley said. “If the Lakers and Sacramento played 100 playoff series, the Lakers are going to win 100 playoff series.”

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He loves L.A.: Midfielder Andreas Herzog, who signed with the Galaxy, used to play in Vienna, Austria. Now he’s glad he’ll be playing in Los Angeles.

“I am sick of jogging in snowfall,” he said.

Hope he doesn’t mind rain.

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What a deal: Bob Knight’s former 4,660-square-foot home, located on five acres in Bloomington, Ind., is for sale on EBay for $397,000. Says Dwight Perry of the Seattle Times: “To spice up the deal, rumor has it that they’ll throw in a folding chair.”

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Looking back: On this day in 1960, the U.S. Olympic hockey team scored six goals in the third period and defeated Czechoslovakia, 9-4, to win the gold medal at the Squaw Valley Winter Olympics.

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Trivia answer: West Virginia, his alma mater, where Schaus coached Jerry West.

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And finally: David Letterman, noting that Alex Rodriguez had already become involved in charity activities in New York, said, “What he decided to do was pay a visit to the less fortunate, and so he drove past Shea Stadium.”

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Larry Stewart can be reached at larry.stewart@latimes.com.