Bugle Sounds, but It May Be ‘Taps’

The cavalry just called. They say they’re busy.

Dreams die hard in the post-Shaquille O’Neal era, where everything is now in order for Phil Jackson to return and save the day.

Laker owner Jerry Buss, once cool to the idea, told ESPNews that Jackson was “probably the best coach available.” Half of Jackson’s staff is back, helping Frank Hamblen reinstall the triangle, which was junked six months ago to implement Showtime II.

Kobe Bryant says he can roll with it, although he looks as if he’d rather drink cod liver oil.

Now there’s just one little problem: Phil doesn’t look as if he’s rolling with it.

Jeanie Buss recently told The Times’ T.J. Simers she wasn’t as optimistic as she had been. Jackson’s pal, Charlie Rosen, told the New York Post, “I think his relationship with the whole organization is irreparable. A lot of stuff that went down never saw the light of day. Kobe was disruptive. Why would he come back? To rebuild?”

Jackson’s agent, Todd Musburger, says it’s “50-50.” Insiders say he’s just preserving Jackson’s options, but Phil will probably sit out next season, waiting for another perfect opportunity, like the Lakers in 1999.

In the meantime, the Knicks have a slim shot because Jackson likes New York, and the Lakers have none, because he has been here, done that and it isn’t 1999.

Jackson was, indeed, getting antsy before leaving for the South Pacific, but he came back looking tan, rested and happy. Either the vacation was great or it was fun having the Lakers and Knicks on the line.

After that, he got so tired of being asked about it, Musburger announced Jackson would have no further comment, noting Phil couldn’t even go out without Laker fans “clamoring for him to ‘Come back and save us!’ ... It’s gotten totally off the wall, nuts.”

A day later, Jackson emerged from 24 hours of Greta Garbo-like seclusion to do a stand-up on ESPN, saying his relationship with Bryant was better than he said it was in his book, and they had repaired it by about 75%.

Great, just 25% more to go!

If you’re wondering where this leaves the Lakers ...

Nine months ago, they traded O’Neal and told Jackson to take a hike in the hope of fielding an exciting, fast-breaking, young team under Mike Krzyzewski -- oops, Rudy Tomjanovich -- with help from Vlade Divac and Karl Malone, so they weren’t really “rebuilding,” a word they refused to use.

What part of that scenario came true?

To start from the beginning, the problem wasn’t that Buss chose Bryant over O’Neal, which is embarrassing now but will look better as time passes.

The problem was all the we’re-the-Lakers-what-could-go-wrong optimism, raising ticket prices and skipping blithely into the unknown with plans that were more like wishes.

And they’re still doing it.

Phil coming back to save the day?

Insiders knew all along Jackson was skeptical about working with Bryant. And even if Phil did come back, it wasn’t going to be to save any day.

Jackson would, indeed, be a great hire, but not because he can pass a wand over this team and contend for titles, as opposed to trying to claw its way into the playoffs.

The best thing about Jackson is that he deals in reality. Remember media day in 1999, when he said he was going to have to take his new team to “remedial school?”

He went on to note he wouldn’t even know what he had until Christmas, when he expected to tell general manager Jerry West which players were getting it and which had to go.

They had Shaq and Kobe then. What do you think Jackson would say on media day in 2005?

Long-range prospects?

Buss told ESPNews they have “the nucleus of a very good team,” and can “fill in our roster and be a contender again ... come free-agent time in a year or two.”

It’s more like the nucleus of a pretty good team, which is a lot different. They’re better on offense now but No. 20 in defense, and not just because they didn’t put in a scheme in camp. When your big men are Chris Mihm and Lamar Odom, you’re not big enough.

Cap room in a year or two?

They can have cap room in the summer of 2007 -- after this season and two more -- if they let everyone but Bryant, Odom and Caron Butler go by then.

Let’s say Yao Ming is a) willing to leave Houston and b) come here for $20 million less than the Rockets offer. To preserve even that slim chance, the Lakers would have to move one of the big three -- or everyone else, including their 2005, 2006 and 2007 No. 1 picks by then.

In other words, they can spend the next two seasons trying to improve or saving cap space. Doing both at the same time will be a good trick.

OK, has anything positive happened?

Actually, lots of things. Mihm was a find, even if he’s more of a power forward than a center. Chucky Atkins has been great, even if he’s not Jason Kidd. Odom is coming, even if he still has that thing with referees.

Now, back to running an inside-out offense instead of the other way around, they would have a legitimate shot at the playoffs if they could start over.

However, the best thing has been Bryant’s change, from the walled-off figure whose tiffs with Ray Allen and Malone cemented his outcast image, to the present Kobe, who is back to being gracious and playing the best basketball of his career.

It took time to recover from the bashing from O’Neal and Jackson and a redesign of the offense, so he wasn’t just pounding the ball into the floor while the entire defense watched him, waiting for him to make his move.

Now -- finally -- playing out of the post in the triangle, he’s averaging 31 points and shooting 49% since the All-Star break, compared to 28 and 39% before it.

Bryant is out of favor as the NBA hypes a new generation of young saviors with old-school games, but Kobe’s is still the most dazzling. He did stuff last week against the Clippers that almost had their coaching staff applauding.

“The first half, he made probably three, four shots, only about a handful of guys on the whole planet can make,” said Coach Mike Dunleavy.

“I want to go back and check the replays. I thought he hit the ground on two of them. Nobody can stay in the air that long.”

None made “SportsCenter’s” highlights, not even the reverse spin into the lane when Bryant went up, encountered Chris Kaman, scissor-kicked, double-clutched and floated a 10-footer over him.

The good news for the Lakers is, this isn’t over yet.

The bad news is, this is just the beginning, they’re not the Lakers anymore and a lot of things have to go right if they ever are to be again.

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Faces and Figures

Hope you didn’t blink and miss the honeymoon: Struggling Chris Webber is already fencing with Allen Iverson and Philadelphia 76er Coach Jim O’Brien. After O’Brien sat him out of a fourth quarter, Webber said, “It’s something I’m not going to get used to. I’m still a great player, and I’m not going to ever get used to playing 20-something minutes a game.” ... Said Webber of playing with Iverson: “It’s different. I’ve never been in a situation like that before. If you would ask my family and friends, everybody is telling me to calm down because you’ll touch the ball, calm down because you’ll have an impact. In no way am I a role player, and I don’t intend to be until I retire.” ... Said Iverson of fans’ booing Webber: “I’ve been in Philadelphia nine years and I’ve seen way worse than that. I’ve been booed. So why would it bother me if somebody else is getting booed?” ... As a local writer noted of GM Billy King: “King Midas touched things and turned them into gold. Whatever Billy King touches turns into mufflers.”

The Denver Nuggets are 15-4 under George Karl, who has given Carmelo Anthony some pointed lessons, sitting him out of overtime in a win at Memphis. Afterward, Anthony reportedly threw a towel in Karl’s direction, although both later agreed it was thrown at someone else. “It bothers me a lot,” said Anthony. “Regardless of what I do, there is always someone out there who is putting out bad press to tear me down.” Karl called it “bad journalism.” ... Of course, when asked about it that night, Karl said, “Ask him.” And Anthony said, “I ain’t talking.”

Chicago Coach Scott Skiles, who singles out Eddy Curry when things go wrong, noted after a zero-rebound game in San Antonio: “By pure luck, you’re going to get one rebound.” ... Then after Skiles benched him in consecutive fourth quarters, Curry mused, “If I’m not here next year, I’m always going to be a Bulls fan. This is where I’m from and where it all started. Eventually, you do have to take a second look at things and think about if it’s the right place for you and your family. You start questioning a lot of stuff when you’re in the position that I’m in.” ... Skiles then blamed the media for asking Curry about it. “He’s still at an age when questions are phrased a certain way where ... I don’t want to say taken advantage of, but he can say things that may or may not be true,” said Skiles.

The future is now, which is good, because the present wasn’t looking so hot: Orlando rookie Dwight Howard, now getting the ball with Jameer Nelson taking over at the point and Steve Francis moving to shooting guard, is breaking out, averaging 15 points and 14 rebounds in March, going for 19-19 against Kevin Garnett.... Meanwhile, new Magic guard Doug Christie, whose wife, Jackie, said he was “distraught” at playing six minutes against Sacramento, missed a practice, a game and then opted to have season-ending surgery for bone spurs.