KNICK NOTES
LOS ANGELES – In November, a Lakers executive asked Glen Rice if he’d be interested in participating in a championship ring ceremony when the Knicks visited the Staples Center here in April.
After all, as this season has proved, Rice – as the third scoring option behind Shaq and Kobe – was an integral part of what the Lakers accomplished last season. Without Rice, the defending champions are fighting just for homecourt in the first round.
Rice said thanks but no thanks. “I told them no,” Rice said. “Why? If they’re going to boo me, I’m not going to go on center stage and let them. I’m not going to give them that opportunity.”
The Lakers’ fans will have plenty of opportunity nevertheless to razz Rice today when the turmoil-ridden Knicks visit for a 5:30 p.m. (EDT) game.
Rice knows he’s in for it, probably worse than Othella Harrington got it in Vancouver and more than Latrell Sprewell got hammered in his second return to Oakland on Monday. November’s game against the Clippers at Staples – when Rice got roundly booed – was just the warmup act.
So Rice is just hoping his revived stroke is smoking today. Rice was jittery in the first clash with the Lakers (3 of 8, 7 points). But Rice is one of the few Knicks having a good Western swing, his foot feeling better than it has in months after taking the 11-day sabbatical.
If not for Rice’s miracle trey at the buzzer of regulation Monday in Golden State, the Knicks, who are 1-3 on the journey, might be staring at an 0-5 trip.
“If they’re booing, you try to do something good and shut them up,” Rice said. “Let’s hope I’ll be doing a lot of shutting them up.”
Rice doesn’t understand why the Clippers’ fans booed him and doesn’t truly understand why he would be booed by the Laker throngs. He has contended he wanted to return but Lakers coach Phil Jackson wanted no part of re-signing the free agent – not after Rice and Rice’s wife Christina Fernandez bombed Jackson during The Finals because of his role.
Rice then took Jackson to task in January before the first meeting with the Lakers at the Garden, saying The Zen Master never wanted him on the team in the first place, but got turned down in attempts to trade for Scottie Pippen.
“They don’t realize I had to do what I had to do and it wasn’t my fault,” Rice said. “They’re going to boo me and there’s nothing I can do about it. There will be some support for me from people who know the game.”
Rice got his championship ring mailed to him in late October. It’s the only happy memory he has from his L.A. days.
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Jackson said he’s “75 percent” sure Kobe Bryant will make his return from a sprained left ankle today. Bryant has missed the last five games, including Friday’s win over Dallas, but did not practice hard yesterday.