Who’s in Charge?

HOUSTON — He is 7 feet and 255 pounds of ignition wire, this otherwise gentle man who comes from Muslim Teachers College in his native Nigeria and now schools the NBA.

Those are the Lakers sitting in the front row these days, discussing the lessons they have learned: Slow Hakeem Olajuwon and you have a good chance to win; become another victim of his 30-point nights, the Houston Rockets’ favorite kind of Dream sequence, and just head for shelter.

Lessons learned or not, these playoffs have the Lakers on the wrong side of a 2-1 margin heading into tonight’s game at the Summit with elimination hanging in the balance. They are going home one way or another late tonight, but it will take a victory to bring the Rockets back too, for a deciding Game 5 at the Forum on Saturday.

The Rockets will probably only have to head west if Olajuwon goes south. History says so, magnifying his impact against a team that has been without a consistent inside deterrent since Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

Take this series for starters: In Game 1, Olajuwon had 33 points and the Rockets won. Less than 48 hours later, he scored 18 and fouled out with 10:05 seconds left and the Rockets lost. Game 3, 30 points and victory.

More?

The Lakers and Rockets have met 15 times in postseason play since Olajuwon arrived. In the seven Houston victories, he has averaged 30.3 points. In the eight losses, 20.5.

Still more?

Olajuwon, en route to finishing second in NBA scoring at 26.9 points a game, averaged 28 against the Lakers in four regular-season games. The Rockets won three of them.

Last season, he averaged 19.3 against the Lakers, about eight below his league average, and the Lakers swept the season series.

In 1993-94, his 27.5-point average helped the Rockets go 3-1 against the Lakers. The year before that, he got 26.3 and they got three more victories.

It is a trend that goes all the way back to 1990-91. He averaged 17 points and the Lakers won three of four. That was two seasons after Abdul-Jabbar had retired.

“I don’t look at numbers,” Olajuwon said when asked if he had an explanation. “It depends on the state of mind at the time. Right now, this is the playoffs. We’re playing to win and I’m not looking at average points. I play in different roles--intimidation, steals, blocked shots, rebounding, more of a complete game.

“They are playing me very tough and not giving me any easy baskets. I have a tremendous respect for [Elden] Campbell and also [Vlade] Divac because they are quality players. At this level, you just have to work hard at both ends. This was a challenge. . . . You just have to face the challenge and work hard and face the battle and prepare for it.”

Finding the difference in the two Olajuwons has not been so clear. The Lakers have watched him add about nine points to his scoring average against them from last season to this and at the same time seen their record in the season series go from 4-0 to 1-3.

“I don’t think anything’s changed,” said Bill Bertka, the Laker assistant coach who works with the big men. “He’s just on top of his game. He’s playing as well as I’ve ever seen him play.”

Maybe it points to the inconsistency of Campbell and Divac, maybe to the impact of Clyde Drexler since he joined Houston last season. Whatever, the Lakers are playing Olajuwon the same.

“Oh, yeah,” Bertka said. “But his efficiency is far greater right now.”

All the way to averaging 27 points in these three games, although the 7.7 rebounds an outing are more than three off the pace that put him sixth in the league. But as the record shows, if he’s scoring, the Rockets are winning, and that has put them on the verge of successfully completing their ninth consecutive playoff series.

Laker Notes

Clyde Drexler had neck spasms during practice, and there is a chance the Rocket guard might not play tonight. It is expected to be a game-time decision.

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

NBA Playoffs

LAKERS vs. ROCKETS

SERIES AT A GLANCE

Game 1 --Houston 87, Lakers 83

Game 2 --Lakers 104, Houston 94

Game 3 --Houston 104, Lakers 98

Game 4 --Tonight at Houston, 6:30

Game 5*--Saturday at Forum, TBA

* If necessary

*

OTHER SERIES

CHICAGO 112, MIAMI 91: (Bulls win series, 3-0)

NEW YORK 81, CLEVELAND 76: (Knicks win series, 3-0)

PHOENIX 94, SAN ANTONIO 93: (Spurs lead series, 2-1)

UTAH 98, PORTLAND 90: (Series tied, 2-2)

*

COVERAGE: C5

NBA BRACKETS: C5

What a Difference a Year Makes . . .

Hakeem Olajuwon has dramatically improved his scoring and shooting percentage against the Lakers this season, which also led to turn in the Rockets’ fortunes.

*--*

Year Games Pts. (Avg.) FG Pct. Reb. (Avg.) Record 1994-95 3 19.3 42.9 11.0 0-3 1995-96 7* 27.9 53.6 9.6 5-2

*--*

* including playoffs