Energized O’Neal Expands His Role

ORLANDO, Fla. —  After spending much of the early season seeking relief from sore feet and ankles, Shaquille O’Neal has been fresher lately, judging by his willingness to run.

He finished two fast breaks Thursday at Detroit, and led one Friday at Washington.

In the latter game, O’Neal broke up the center of the court, dribbling almost to his shoulder, like an oversized Magic Johnson. Derek Fisher was to his left, with a man between them.

Deftly, O’Neal flipped a pass to Fisher, who returned a lob from about 20 feet. As the staid folks of the MCI Center gasped, O’Neal sent the pass crashing through the net, and the Laker reserves jumped to their feet.

On Saturday, O’Neal sat in a practice gym, awash in his point-center moment, when someone suggested he might have carried the ball on his way up court. His jaw dropped.

“That’s bull,” he said playfully. “I did not carry the ball.”

Laker Coach Phil Jackson occasionally has thought aloud about O’Neal handling the basketball, musings that make everyone but Shaq chuckle. So, it’s kind of a sensitive subject, this palming thing that he does not do.

“My hand is on top of the ball,” he said, laughing. “It doesn’t matter how high it is, as long as my hand is on top of the ball. Aw, you don’t play the game like I do. You just observe the game. See, your observation is wrong, because you’re sitting down at a lower angle. You need to look up high.”

It still looked like a carry.

“No,” he said. “Uh-uh. No. This is what I did. I had it behind me. My hand’s still on top, a little bit on the side but not under. I had to throw it in front of me. That’s just pow, that’s some Allen Iverson stuff. That’s all it is, under control, get it back to the guard like you’re supposed to and finish it.”

He grinned. It’s true. He’s much fresher.

*

While the rest of the Lakers stayed in Washington until Saturday, Orlando residents O’Neal and Horace Grant chartered a jet and left late Friday. They were at the practice facility when the team arrived, and O’Neal had a hug for everybody. Including Kobe Bryant.

O’Neal clearly was happy to be in his adopted hometown. For one thing, his mother lives 10 minutes from the practice facility. And the fans largely have forgiven the manner in which he left here after the 1995-96 season.

“There’s less and less of that,” O’Neal said. “We’re a different team, they’re a different team. They got over it. I got over it. Real life-wise, I live here. I’m a resident of Florida. I will remain a resident of Florida. I just added another 8,000 square feet onto my house, so I’ll be here. My kids will be here.”

The other part, the fame and fortune and basketball in L.A.?

“It’s a fairy-tale life,” he said. “It could be gone any day.”

Then he snapped his fingers.

*

The Lakers haven’t had many chances to practice recently, what with all of the games and travel days. They were delayed by about 90 minutes Saturday, because their jet idled at one Washington airport and the team bus went to the other.

Once they got into Orlando, they scrimmaged for about an hour, four on four full-court. Ron Harper tested his ailing left knee, and still had no feel for when he will come off the injured list.

TODAY

at Orlando, 9 a.m. PST

Channel 4

* Site--TD Waterhouse Centre.

* Radio--KLAC (570).

* Records--Lakers 44-21, Magic 36-29.

* Record vs. Magic--1-0.

* Update--The Magic is 8-3 since losing to the Lakers, 106-100, on Feb. 25 at Staples Center. Shaquille O’Neal scored 37 points in that game. Tracy McGrady, averaging 27.2 points and 7.8 rebounds, has completed his two-game suspension for fighting with Bobby Jackson of the Sacramento Kings. The Magic won both, at Cleveland and against the Vancouver Grizzlies. Darrell Armstrong scored 29 points and had 11 assists in Orlando’s victory over the Grizzlies on Friday. McGrady has kept the league office busy recently. Beyond the fight, he was told that his public lobbying for Chris Webber amounted to tampering, and was asked to stop.