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Perfect present Game 4 win would be nice birthday gift for Perkins
Posted: Wednesday June 14, 2000 12:01 AM
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) -- Happy birthday, Big Smooth. Sam Perkins, the oldest, most playoff-tested player on the Indiana Pacers, turns 39 Wednesday, the day of Game 4 in the NBA Finals. His ideal birthday present would be a victory that evens the best-of-seven series with the Los Angeles Lakers. "A good win would be cool. A real good win," said Perkins, flashing a big smile. Perkins, who expects to retire after the series, has come off the bench for two seasons and has given the Pacers some muscle under the basket and a sweet 3-point touch, drawing cries of "Smooooth" from the fans just about every time he touches the ball. What amazes him, though, is that he's still playing after 16 years in the NBA. "I thought six years would probably have been the life span of my career, but I've been doing something right where coaches have me on their team and they get quality minutes," he said. "That's the part I like." A member of North Carolina's 1982 NCAA championship team, Perkins was picked by Dallas in the first round of the 1984 draft, the fourth player overall. He played six years with the Mavericks, two-plus years with the Lakers and the next five years with Seattle before he signed with the Pacers as a free agent in January 1999. "At first, with all the aches and injuries that I had in my early career, I thought I would be just gone. But somehow my body just rejuvenated," said the 6-foot-9 Perkins, who has 15,082 points and a 12.3-point career scoring average. Pacers assistant coach Rick Carlisle said Tuesday he is astounded that Perkins has never been an NBA All-Star. "He's one of the best players I've ever been around in terms of his work ethic, his professionalism, his skill level. ... He has unbelievable diversity in terms of the defensive things he can do. He's guarded everybody from Shaq to some of the smaller guys in the league. At the age of 39, that's a phenomenal thing," Carlisle said. Perkins has been in 161 playoff games. The only player in NBA history who has been in more without winning a championship is Utah's John Stockton, with 168. "I take care of myself, basically," Perkins said. "Offseason was always a challenge to me, but now it comes so easy to the point you kind of know what to do. You know how much time you need to rest your body and get it going again. I go out there now, 260, 262 pounds, which is almost the weight I came in here with, so that must be a sign." Playing as Rik Smits' backup against Shaquille O'Neal, who outweighs Perkins by 70 pounds, is no easy task, however. "The thing is, when you're leaning on him, he's leaning on you," Perkins said. "You just have to take every pound, every muscle that you have in your body, to say, 'Hey, I'm going to do this.' ... You go out and work hard, and especially when you win, it's more rewarding to your body. When you lose, it's almost like your whole body is just exhausted. But that's how it is." Smits said Perkins is "kind of deceiving." "He's really very strong. Plus the offense he brings, those 3-pointers, if he has it going, he can really turn a game around. ... Once he's on track and stroking 'em, it's good to have him on our team," Smits said. The battle with Shaq will continue at least through Game 5 on Friday and possibly two more games. He said he most likely will call it quits. "I don't have a contract to lean on, so I think it will, probably," Perkins said. Carlisle isn't so sure. "Sam goes back and forth a little, I think," Carlisle said. "His contract is up, but my feeling is I think he could be convinced to play another year, depending on the circumstance."
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