1999-04-24, By Glenn Rogers
湖人秀场遭遇差评
他们是全国电视的“金童”。
查一下吧。到本赛季结束时，洛杉矶湖人队将在你家电视上出现 26 次，比他们 50 场比赛的一半还多。
在迈克尔·乔丹(Michael Jordan) 和他的帮手们四散到东西南北后，电视网络高层认为他们应该去西部看看。
对于今晚将在阿拉莫圆顶球场对阵马刺队的球队来说，事情并没有像电视高层想象的那样顺利。
马刺队主教练格雷格·波波维奇(Gregg Popovich) 说，湖人是圣安东尼奥最难对付的对手。“他们一直压制着我们，”他说。
但这是一支不同的洛杉矶球队。
湖人在季前赛中以绝对优势被看好挑战东部顶级球队争夺 NBA 冠军。
现在，这支洛杉矶宠儿将很难获得晋级第一轮的资格。
教练的更迭、主要球员的交易以及丹尼斯·罗德曼(Dennis Rodman) 的强势加盟，都将对一支球队产生影响。湖人队没有冲进常规赛的冲刺阶段，而是努力避免尴尬。他们不再谈论冠军，而是谈论着软弱的“我们必须一场一场地进步”。
电视确实得到了很多令人愉悦的美味：
沙奎尔·奥尼尔(Shaquille O’Neal)，这位统治级的中锋、好莱坞的浪子、说唱歌手和电影明星，以及科比·布莱恩特(Kobe Bryant)，这位充满活力、魅力和低调自我的年轻球星，用他们之间关于球队统治权的斗争，吸引着人们的目光。
埃迪·琼斯(Eddie Jones) 和埃尔登·坎贝尔(Elden Campbell) 首先陷入了交易传闻的阴影，然后被送往夏洛特，换来了神射手格伦·莱斯(Glen Rice)。
德尔·哈里斯(Del Harris) 遭受了痛苦，他的焦虑每天都在被记录和谈论，直到他被解雇。库特·兰比斯(Kurt Rambis)，湖人队辉煌年代的一员，被任命为教练，尽管被贴上了“临时”的标签。
然后，世界级的吸睛者罗德曼来了。他并没有让人失望。他用自己的放纵让评论员喋喋不休，让印刷媒体争先恐后，直到他耗尽了最忠实的支持者，最终被耻辱地送走。
没有人能要求更多了。
除了想要冠军的湖人队。
“现在对这支球队的期望是不公平的，”兰比斯说。“他们是在赛季初就有的期望，当时是有机会实现的。
“但你需要稳定才能赢得冠军，而我们经历了戏剧性的变化。现在抱有这样的期望是不现实的。现在不是‘何时’赢得冠军，而是今年‘是否’能赢得冠军。这些不是借口，而是事实。”
然后，加上布莱恩特-奥尼尔之间的戏剧性。他们能共存吗？谁才是领袖？
“这不是不喜欢，只是嫉妒，”副总裁杰里·韦斯特(Jerry West) 说。“我在和埃尔金·贝勒(Elgin Baylor) 和威尔特·张伯伦(Wilt Chamberlain) 在更衣室时，也看到了类似的事情。”
奥尼尔曾说过，布莱恩特必须长大。许多人同意。
布莱恩特倾向于不予理会。
“我甚至没有想过，”他说。“我通常只是保持沉默，但沙克和我训练时会聊天。我们在比赛中沟通得很好。除了这些，我觉得没有必要和他说话。”
布莱恩特认为，这并不是喜欢对方的问题，而是场上表现好的问题。
布莱恩特被誉为下一个乔丹。他拥有乔丹的倾向和天赋。他会像乔丹一样快速地打破比赛，但他离乔丹式的知道何时打破比赛还差得远。
布莱恩特和奥尼尔都承认，本赛季的期望已经发生了突然的变化。
“这些变化影响了球队，”布莱恩特说。“我们没有像一些球队那样的核心。现在每一晚都是挑战。”
奥尼尔更简洁。
“如果我们像在一些比赛中那样打球，我们就没有任何机会夺冠，”他说。“如果我们能继续进步，我们就有机会。我们必须打得聪明。我们一直在做蠢事，比如没有把球传给射手。我不知道为什么。
“在圣安东尼奥会非常艰难。他们的两个大个子打得很好，我们今年已经两次战胜了他们。”
湖人队失去了琼斯提供的活力，而且并没有从莱斯那里得到预期的得分。这位前黄蜂队球员场均仅得 17.2 分，投篮命中率仅为 41%。
“我们必须更多地给莱斯传球，”奥尼尔说。“我们必须利用他的优势，而不是劣势。他必须更多地从掩护中出来。”
兰比斯负责所有这些，他是一位全新的主教练，不能确定他明年是否还会在湖人的替补席上。
“我根本没有想过，一点都没有，”他说。“那是我无法控制的事情。
点击查看原文：Lake Show receives poor reviews
Lake Show receives poor reviews
They’re national television’s Golden Boys.
Look it up. The Los Angeles Lakers will have been beamed into your home 26 times by the end of this abbreviated season, one more than half of their 50 games.
The network honchos figured they should go west after Michael Jordan & Co. scattered to all points North, South, East and West.
It hasn’t panned out quite the way the tele bosses figured for the team that will take on the Spurs at the Alamodome tonight.
Spurs coach Gregg Popovich says the Lakers are the toughest matchup for San Antonio. “They’ve had their way with us,” he said.
But this is a different Los Angeles team.
The Lakers stormed into the preseason as heavy favorites to challenge the East’s top team for NBA super honors.
Now the L.A. darlings will have a tough time earning picks to get out of the first round.
That’s what a change in coaches, a major swap of players and a powerful dose of Dennis Rodman will do to a team. The Lakers, instead of storming into the regular season’s stretch run, are trying to avoid embarrassment. Instead of talking title, they’re talking the wimpy “we’ve got to improve game by game.”
Television did get plenty of the delightfully delicious:
Shaquille O’Neal, the dominant center, Hollywood gadabout, rapper and movie star and Kobe Bryant, the kid superstar, full of pizzazz and panache and understated ego, tantalized with what some figured were struggles for team supremacy.
Eddie Jones and Elden Campbell first played in the shadow of trade rumors and then were sent packing to Charlotte in exchange for wonder-shooter Glen Rice.
Del Harris suffered, his angst scribbled and talked about on a daily basis until he was fired. Kurt Rambis, the member of the Lakers’ glory years, was anointed, albeit tagged with the word interim.
Then world-class attention grabber Rodman arrived. He didn’t disappoint. He had talking heads yakking and print media scrambling with his self-indulgence until he wore out the heartiest supporter and was ignominiously shipped out.
Nobody could ask for anything more.
Nobody except the Lakers who wanted nothing but title talk.
“The expectations for this team now are unfair,” Rambis said. "They were there at the beginning of the season, and there was a good shot at it then.
“But you need stability to win a title, and we’ve had the dramatic changes. It’s unrealistic now to have those expectations. It’s not ‘when’ we will win a title now, it’s a big ‘if’ for this year. These are not excuses, they are facts.”
Then, toss in the Bryant-O’Neal melodrama. Can they co-exist? Who’s the main man?
“It’s not dislike, it’s just a jealousy,” said Vice President Jerry West. “I saw that same sort of thing while sitting in a locker room with Elgin (Baylor) and Wilt (Chamberlain).”
O’Neal has said that Bryant has to grow up. Many agree.
Bryant tends to brush it off.
“I don’t even think about that,” he said. “I usually just keep to myself, but Shaq and I talk during practice. We communicate very well on the floor during a game. I don’t feel any need to talk to him other than that.”
It’s not a matter of liking one another, it’s a matter of playing well on the court, according to Bryant.
Bryant has been hailed as the next Jordan. He has Jordan tendencies and talents. He’ll break a play as quickly as Jordan ever did, but he’s far from Jordanesque in knowing when to break one.
Both Bryant and O’Neal acknowledge that the season’s expectations have been abruptly altered.
“The changes have affected the team,” Bryant said. “We have no nucleus like some teams. Now it’s a challenge every night.”
O’Neal is more succinct.
“If we play like we have in some games, we have no chance for a title,” he said. "If we can continue to improve, we have a chance. We have to play smart. We’ve been doing stupid things, like not getting the ball to the shooters. I have no idea why.
“It’s going to be very tough in San Antonio. Their two big guys are playing very well and we’ve already beaten them twice this year.”
The Lakers lost the rousing energy supplied by Jones and haven’t replaced it with the expected scoring from Rice. The former Hornet is averaging just 17.2 points a game, putting down just 41 percent of his tries.
“We’ve got to get Rice the ball more,” O’Neal said. “We have to use him to our advantage, not disadvantage. He has to come off screens more.”
Rambis is in charge of all this, a brand-new head coach who can’t be certain he’ll be back on the Lakers’ sidelines next year.
“I don’t think about that at all, not one iota,” he said. "That’s something that is not in my control.
By Glenn Rogers, via San Antonio Express-News