It Was Rush Who Answered the Call

Jeanette Jacobs, Kareem Rush’s grandmother, had propped herself in her bedroom, where the big television is, as she always does on Laker game nights.

Then, little by little Monday night, as the three-pointers fell on a court in Los Angeles, her quiet corner of Kansas City, Mo., came to life.

Her daughter, Glenda, Kareem’s mother, called.

Her grandson, JaRon, Kareem’s brother, called.

Nephews and nieces called, and friends of Kareem who’d hung around the house in junior high and high school. They all watched on their televisions, in their corners of Kansas City, as Kareem made six three-pointers, driving the Lakers past the Minnesota Timberwolves one last time and into the NBA Finals.

“It was so exciting, I can hardly tell you,” Jacobs said. “I was just so happy for him.”

Kareem’s cousin called. “Kareem’s falling tonight!” he shouted into the phone.

Kareem’s brother called. “He is playing tonight!” he screamed.

Of course, Kareem Rush always could shoot. He’d align his left shoulder just so and flip the ball with such ease. At Missouri, he once made seven three-pointers in a game at Texas Tech. The NBA was different, though, the three-point line one very large step backward.

In 173 NBA games before Game 6, regular and postseason, Rush had made 81 three-pointers in 244 attempts, 33.2%.

Then, with the Finals seemingly in the balance, Rush made six and missed one, 85.7%, in the biggest game of his life, while the rest of the Lakers shooters were three for 14 from the arc.

“What you saw from Kareem was a desire to get there, to be there,” teammate Rick Fox said.

When the last three-pointer had dropped, another rainbow from just left of center to give the Lakers an 89-79 lead with 3:22 left and he indeed had arrived, there was delirium in a bedroom in Kansas City, where the ringing telephone threatened to drown out the postgame interviews.

“He’s played like that before,” Jacobs said. “Just never at this level.... I was so nervous they were going to lose. Then, for him to stand out like that was super. I was so happy for him.”

She was in Los Angeles for Games 3 and 4, but returned to Kansas City when the Lakers went back to Minneapolis and said she did not think she would be able to attend any of the NBA Finals.

So, she’ll fluff up the pillows and get comfortable and keep the phone nearby.

“I can’t wait,” she said. “I do manage to stay awake when the Lakers are playing.”

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Shaquille O’Neal has averaged 34.2 points in four NBA Finals, second-highest to Rick Barry’s 36.3.

Karl Malone and Gary Payton make up the entire other side of Coach Phil Jackson’s second three-peat, Payton’s 1996 Seattle SuperSonics losing to the Chicago Bulls in six games and Malone’s 1997 and 1998 Utah Jazz losing in six games each.

The Lakers were off Tuesday and will reconvene at the team’s El Segundo practice facility today.