Columnist Dean Juipe: Kings face tall order in Lakers

Dean Juipe

Monday, May 7, 2001 | 10:23 a.m.

Dean Juipe's column appears Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday. His boxing notebook appears Thursday. Reach him at juipe@lasvegassun.com or 259-4084.

I've been invited to have lunch Wednesday with George Maloof, so I have to watch what I say about his Sacramento Kings.

So let's be nice.

George, your Kings are one of the most exciting teams in the National Basketball Association and they had a wonderful regular season. They led the league in scoring, they have an international roster that broadens their appeal, and even those fans who prefer collegians over the pros have been taken with the Kings' contagious spunk and enthusiasm.

After they won their first-round playoff series with Phoenix, the Kings were boyishly jubilant and playing as well as they have all season. They were getting big-time scoring from Peja Stojakovic -- who had 41 points in the series clincher against the Suns -- and felt their minor flaws, mainly the mediocre shooting and excessive turnovers of Chris Webber, were so correctable as to not be of major concern.

The Kings, 55-27 in the regular season and coming off wins by 26, 8 and 7 points over the Suns, were primed and ready for a second-round assignment against the equally hot and sometimes intimidating Los Angeles Lakers.

They may have even been buoyed by a sentiment expressed by NBC broadcaster Steve Jones, who said "the Lakers are playing great, but they're due to have a bad game."

Unfortunately for Maloof, and his brothers who share ownership of the Kings, as well as the Kings themselves and their fans, Game 1 of the best-of-seven series Sunday in Los Angeles proved again that it's the Lakers who deserve to be considered the team to beat in the NBA. Not only did they not have the Jones-predicted bad game, they rode the overpowering 1-2 punch of Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant to a 108-105 victory that re-emphasized the notion that the road to the league championship clearly runs through LA.

Can the Kings beat the Lakers?

No doubt.

But can they take four of the next six games and earn the right to advance to the Western Conference finals?

It's unlikely.

The Lakers have now won 12 straight games and have long since buried the notion that was prevalent at midseason that they had become fat and sassy after winning the championship a year ago. They're not a great team in the traditional, well-rounded sense, but O'Neal and Bryant are phenomenal and deserve to be considered the two finest players in the world.

O'Neal had 44 points, 21 rebounds and seven blocks against the Kings, while opposing center Vlade Divac was limited to seven points and seven boards.

Bryant had 29 points and eluded defensive star Doug Christie for repetitive jaunts to the basket, particularly in the second half when the Lakers clung to a lead that never exceeded 10.

And although Webber returned to form with 34 points, Stojakovic hit only 6 of 18 shots to place the Kings in a precarious position heading into Game 2 Tuesday at the Staples Center.

Sacramento vs. Los Angeles is the most intriguing playoff series of the four that are ongoing, yet it will diminish in interest if the Lakers get up 2-0.

I'll watch Tuesday's game but even if I don't, I bet I can gauge how it went for the Kings by Maloof's appetite the following day.