Lakers Set to Meet With Tomjanovich

On the night Rudy Tomjanovich was to arrive in Los Angeles, Shaquille O’Neal’s agents were at Laker headquarters, where they would assure General Manager Mitch Kupchak that their client was serious about his trade demand.

By today, two days before the NBA draft, hours before he’d know whether Derek Fisher and Gary Payton would return, four days after Kobe Bryant had opted out of his contract and owner Jerry Buss had opted not to invite Coach Phil Jackson back, Kupchak’s off-season schedule will have multiplied again.

The Lakers have a coach to hire, a blockbuster trade to sculpt and a superstar swingman to soothe on the occasion of yet more pretrial hearings, among other tasks, such as holding the franchise together.

Tomjanovich could be a start to the reconstruction. That could mean new pieces or old, but Tomjanovich recently became convinced that this was the job for him.

The Lakers also have reestablished contact with old friend Pat Riley, who is president of the Miami Heat but for two days showed serious interest in replacing Jackson.

As one NBA observer said this weekend, “Don’t ever count Riley out,” and, sure enough, the Lakers and Riley have had several discussions about the job, despite the somewhat convincing denial he issued Saturday.

The Laker interest is said to have waned when Riley presented a long list of demands, but the possibility of Riley reuniting with the Lakers is not out of the question.

Tomjanovich is scheduled to meet today with Kupchak and Buss, discussions that could coincide with Jackson clearing out his second-floor office in El Segundo. As of Monday afternoon, the Indian feathers still hung from the sprinkler head.

Kupchak said Monday that his coaching search could extend two more weeks, though all signs now appear to point to Tomjanovich and to it happening fast.

“We feel that next year we’re going to be in a position to win,” Kupchak said. “I don’t think we’re going to take the chance to experiment with an unproven coach. I’m not ruling out the possibility our coach could be an assistant coach on our team or another team. But, at this time, we want to indicate that we’re committed to winning here.”

Already there is speculation that Tomjanovich would bring along former assistants Jim Boylen and Larry Smith and that Kurt Rambis would be asked to stay on.

If it is change that Buss desires, then Tomjanovich would be the anti-Jackson. Tomjanovich calls plays. He stands during games. He bellows throughout most of them.

As of Monday evening, George Karl had not been contacted, suggesting still that the Lakers would let Tomjanovich and Riley play out first.

Whoever is named coach, he could be without O’Neal, who is standing by his request to leave Los Angeles. It’s a lot of contract to trade, $27.7 million next season alone, and then O’Neal could opt out in a year, but that won’t stop the telephone calls.

It also is possible Bryant will delay his signing decision as long as he can in order to gauge O’Neal’s plans, pushing his free agency well past July 14, the first day free agents can sign contracts.

Kupchak apparently would be genuinely surprised to learn O’Neal hadn’t softened his demands. In the moments before he met with agents Perry Rogers and Mike Parris, Kupchak sounded as if he hoped for a reconciliation.

“We’ve all been around Shaquille a bunch of years now,” he said.

“He kind of wears his emotions on his sleeve. Sometimes it’s with thought, and sometimes it’s not. I would say most of the time it is.”

The trade, Kupchak said, “is not something we want to do or something we prefer to do,” and he hoped that three days would be enough, “for everybody to wind down a little bit and calm down a little bit.”

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Tracy McGrady recently told Florida Today that he would like to play with O’Neal, his Orlando neighbor, and that they’d already plotted to join the Mavericks.

“Me and the big fella are trying to get to Dallas together now,” he said.

McGrady and a teammate or two appear headed to Houston for Steve Francis and others, but the process of trading O’Neal has just started.

The Lakers, meanwhile, probably would not look at a deal with the contract-heavy Mavericks that did not include Dirk Nowitzki, and Maverick owner Mark Cuban began negotiations this way: “I’d be hard-pressed to see us trading Dirk. Dirk is as close to untouchable as you can get. Never say never, because there’s always something that can change it.”

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Payton must notify Kupchak by Wednesday if he intends to play another season for the Lakers. Fisher has until Thursday morning.

Payton had been leaning toward returning. He was heartened by Jackson’s departure and the talk that Tomjanovich would replace him.

Those close to Payton expect him to stay if he believes O’Neal can be talked into withdrawing his demand. It is of particular significance to Payton and Karl Malone, recruited to the Lakers by O’Neal.

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Rick Fox and Jamal Sampson have been left unprotected for today’s expansion draft, which will stock the roster of the Charlotte Bobcats.

Fox, who is due $5.1 million next season, has said he would retire rather than play for a team other than the Lakers.

Sampson, who has not played much since college but is 21, 6 feet-11 and athletic, is said to interest the Bobcats.