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Notebook Fox, Jackson cry foul over call in closing seconds
Posted: Thursday June 15, 2000 02:08 AM
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) -- Although Reggie Miller's final miss made it moot, the Los Angeles Lakers were incensed by a foul called against them with 5.9 seconds to play in overtime of their 120-118 Game 4 victory. With the Lakers up 120-117 and Indiana preparing to inbound the ball at midcourt, Pacers forward Jalen Rose moved into Lakers forward Rick Fox, and the two tumbled to the court. Referees called a holding foul on Fox, and since it occurred before the ball was inbounded, Indiana got one free throw and the ball. The Lakers howled, claiming Rose had initiated the contact, hooked Fox and then fallen on top of him -- which is exactly what replays appeared to show. "That obviously is an old-time NBA play, especially when you're three or four down, to try to find a way to make the game winnable," Jackson said. "Rick got tied up with Rose and couldn't disentangle himself. It was a call I think the referee had to make, even though it was pretty obvious what happened." Miller made the free throw to cut Los Angeles' lead to two points, but he missed the desperation 3-pointer that followed. The call against Fox made it a potential game-winning shot instead of a game-tying one, a fact that wasn't lost on Fox. "It didn't matter, so it's over," Fox said. "That's just a tricky play on their part, but it's no big deal. Game over. If Reggie had made that shot, then you'd hear about it."
Jackson's lipLakers coach Phil Jackson was famous for playing mind games with his players and their opponents alike while he led the Chicago Bulls to six NBA championships. In the final round of his quest for a seventh ring, Jackson waited until moments before Game 4 to rankle the Indiana Pacers with some deftly placed comments. In his pregame chat with reporters Wednesday night, Jackson was asked what he thought about the Pacers' complaints that Shaquille O'Neal spends too much time in the lane and should be called for more three-second violations. "Typical Indiana stuff," Jackson said. "They did it with us with Chicago. They're always looking for referees to help them out. You haven't heard one word about Reggie's (Miller) footwork and all the illegal screens. We haven't said anything about that. We won't even mention it." His audience laughed, and Jackson went further a moment later when asked to expand on his thoughts about three-second calls. "Most of the screens that Indiana does start out in the middle of the lane, and they oftentimes take five seconds to develop," Jackson said. "But because it doesn't involve any offensive action ... it kind of doesn't count." So what did Indiana coach Larry Bird think of Jackson's verbal volleys? Are the Pacers really the whiners Jackson made them out to be? "Sometimes," Bird said with a grin. "Yeah, we like to whine, but we like to win also." Jackson also gave NBC announcer Bill Walton a few good-natured jibes, punctuated by his response when Walton asked what steps he had taken to prevent the Lakers' "disastrous start that plagued the team throughout Game 3?" "Well, I don't like your choice of words, but that's the way you talk," Jackson said with a grin. "Disastrous is not something we consider it."
Check flapWhile city officials hope the NBA Finals will cast a positive glow on Indiana's capital, one television crew from China is not gushing about Hoosier hospitality. The crew from China Central, a government-owned network, couldn't get an Indianapolis bank to cash $5,000 worth of traveler's checks on Tuesday for the country's premier sportscaster, Sun Zhengping. Then a bank official called security to throw the crew out, crew members said. Zhang Weiping, who does color commentary, said the crew caught the incident on tape and would play it on Chinese television -- as an example of discrimination -- unless it received an explanation from Union Planters Bank. An answer came Wednesday when the bank invited the group back, cashed the checks and presented them with Indiana Pacers caps and golf shirts and memorabilia from Union Planters Bank. Barbara Branic, executive vice president for Union Planters, said in a statement that the gifts were "a token of our sincerity to welcome international guests and again to demonstrate our city's reputation for hospitality." Branic said the bank's policy is to cash traveler's checks up to $100, with proper identification, and up to $500 at the discretion of the branch manager. When Sun asked to cash $5,000 worth, the bank manager called his supervisor and was told not to do it, Branic said.
Quote of the day"I've seen wives hit writers on top of the heads with their pocketbooks in Boston. I've seen them swear at officials walking by. I've seen it all. It doesn't faze me. They're just trying to protect their man. If my man was making $12 million, $15 million a year, I'd be trying to protect him, too." -- Indiana coach Larry Bird, when asked what he thought of the well-publicized comments by Glen Rice's wife over her husband's lack of playing time.
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