Projos Bill Reynolds On Elton Brand, the Lakers, Jersey Red....

[Way Of The Ray <wayray@ix.netcom.com>]

        4.10.99 00:04:09
        BILL REYNOLDS
        Network is wishing upon the wrong star

FOR WHAT IT'S WORTH:
<snippage>
It seems to me that NBC's obvious decision to
showcase the Lakers has backfired, for the simple
reason that they're a microcosm of everything that's
wrong with the NBA.

The Lakers are an underachieving, selfish team, one
that's testimony to the theory that the NBA after
Michael is a different place, full of hip-hop culture
and other complexities that have made the league more
difficult to market.

So why are they on so much?

Simple. The Lakers have star power. They have Kobe and
Shaq and Laker Girls and celebrities that sit in the
front row. And in this year with no Michael and the
Bulls only a memory of what they used to be, it's
obvious that the poobahs at NBC have anointed the
Lakers -- the sexy, young team in a major market.

It's a mistake.

I'm hearing Dave Cowens is the new leader in
the clubhouse for the URI job, with the
behind-the-scenes maneuvering to get Jerry DeGregorio
to stay as his top assistant.

If you had six months in the over-under for how
long Dennis Rodman's marriage would last, you lost.

Someone had better throw the Knicks a life
raft.

Elton Brand has been a dominant college player,
but at 6-foot-8, his game had better expand or else he
will disappoint in the NBA.

Speaking of Brand, you know it's a new era when
Dookies leave early.

You know it's a strange world, Bunky, when
Wednesday night in the FleetCenter -- with Bill Russell
in the house, no less -- the message board welcomed
Jersey Red. You figure it out.

It might just be over for the Nets' Jayson
Williams, out with a broken leg.

Vince Carter jumps like Jordan once did.

Is it me, or do all New York City point guards
look to score before they pass?


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