It’s a Sorry Excuse, but He Didn’t Even Say ‘Sorry’

Cedric as in Wreck, or London Bridge Is Falling Down on Me: It’s sad to see a player who worked as hard as Cedric Ceballos torpedo his career with one move.

It’s difficult, too, but he did it, sunk by an illusion--he was a great star--a mistake and an inability to admit it. The Laker co-captain went down with his houseboat on Lake Havasu.

Assuming, as Laker players, officials and everyone but blood relatives do, that his “family crisis� was really “insufficient playing time for Dad,� it was one mistake too many and one apology too few.

He should have holed up in his house. Instead, he and the family checked into the London Bridge Resort and went boating. Big mistake unless he wanted to get caught or be the butt of a million jokes.

He should have stood up and accepted the consequences.

A check of the roster reminds us that several other Lakers have messed up too. Teammates would have forgiven him on the spot if he had looked them in the eye and said he’d done something stupid out of emotion. Instead, he said he erred only by not calling in.

Insiders say he hasn’t talked much to teammates.

“They think he didn’t come clean with everything,� said Lester Conner, Magic Johnson’s barnstorming partner, in Orlando. “That’s why they didn’t talk to him on the flight here or during the shoot-around.�

It was just the Cedric they knew: ambitious, star-struck, on his own trip, no matter how glibly he covered it up when the TV lights came on.

Ceballos came out of left field, an ordinary player at Dominguez Hills High with a burning ambition that defied an adolescence full of rejections. You don’t go from Ventura College to Cal State Fullerton to the Phoenix Suns, but he did. You can’t be an NBA forward at 6 feet 6, but he was.

His ambition never stopped burning. A Sun official says Ceballos had a Charles Barkley problem--he thought he could be the next coming of his friend, Barkley.

Joining the bedraggled Lakers of 1994, Ceballos began talking about himself in heroic terms that had people rolling their eyes. In fact, he was still a role player but one who could post big numbers by moving without the ball. He was whip-smart on the floor, a preening peacock off it.

He was the team spokesman, not that he spoke for anyone else--he was a noted loner--but because he was a hot dog and everyone else was shy or uninterested. The press is a puppy, eager to have its belly rubbed, easy to exploit. Of course, there was some insincerity, whether or not Ceballos realized it. He’d probably been passing out his bull so long, he believed it.

He got a fine ride, cutting a rap record, appearing on “Puzzle Place,� dropping names of his new friends, Jack and Denzel. But the road to superstardom is hard, especially if you’re not a superstar. He was distressed at not repeating as an All-Star, at the end of his double-figure scoring streak.

Johnson made them a team, but his minutes had to come from somewhere and grumbling was heard anew: Coach was subbing erratically, had no confidence in them, etc. Del Harris is the Lakers’ third coach in three seasons and some of them are still looking for Mr. Right.

It was Ceballos, neither the youngest nor the one sacrificing the most, who went over the (Arizona state) line. In a crowning irony, a few hours before the fateful hook, he was on ESPN’s “Up Close,� gushing about the Laker renaissance and playing with Johnson:

“I think I’ve benefited a lot because I’ve been in his ear the whole time. I say, ‘Magic, what you do in this situation?’

“The fans in Los Angeles wanted him back. So did we. . . . Every game I try to bring him something old. Thirty-six, for him, is kind of an old guy. Before the [Orlando] Magic game, I brought him a pair of his rookie shoes. I had to search around for them. I found them and he signed them for me. . . .

“He always says, ‘Well, I got these five rings on my fingers and I don’t know what to do, my hands are getting heavy.’

“I’m trying to get there where he was, but if I can learn as much as I can from him, I’ll be satisfied.�

That night against the SuperSonics, he played 12 minutes. Forgetting to ask Magic what to do in that situation, he split, a case of bad timing in more ways than one.

The Lakers have moves to make. If Johnson stays and they retain Elden Campbell, they won’t be $8 million under the cap but $1 million or so. If they want to shop with the big dogs, someone has to go.

Harris is now playing Ceballos as a backup, to see if he can become part of things or to de-emphasize him if it doesn’t work out. Hysteria aside, these things aren’t irreparable. Scottie Pippen took a hike and remains a Bull. Hakeem Olajuwon feuded with the team owner and remains a Rocket.

Of course, they’re superstars. At the moment, Ceballos, a fine player who got carried away, could go boating and no one might say anything worse than “Bon voyage.�

THE COLLEGE POSTSEASON: PROSPECTS, SUSPECTS

They helped themselves:

Allen Iverson, Georgetown--He and Tim Duncan are now considered the impact collegians. Problem: Some nights he looks like Isiah Thomas, some like Mark Macon. Who was the last player who learned shot selection in the pros?

Erick Dampier, Mississippi State--Limited offensively--�Bad hands,� says an NBA personnel director. “Takes a direct hit.�--but at 6-11 and 265, a force at the defensive end.

Samaki Walker, Louisville--A knee injury and an NCAA investigation messed up his sophomore season but he played well against Duncan. Considered a top power forward prospect again.

Roy Rogers, Alabama--Starred in the NIT. Raw but blocks shots.

John Wallace, Syracuse--Now a clear-cut top pick.

Adonal Foyle, Colgate--Pro scouts finally saw the 6-10, 260-pound mystery sophomore from the Patriot League and liked him.

Antoine Walker, Kentucky--Ability to shoot is the question.

They didn’t:

Ray Allen, Connecticut--Still a bright prospect, perhaps not a superstar.

Kerry Kittles, Villanova--This makes two consecutive NCAA tournaments in which he didn’t wow scouts in big games.

Shareef Abdur-Rahim, California--Young is young.

They’re coming out early but shouldn’t:

Stephon Marbury, Georgia Tech--Obviously, this freshman is talented enough, but Coach Bobby Cremins switched him to shooting guard to get him over the hump and let Drew Barry run the team. “How’s he supposed to run a team in this league when he couldn’t run one at Georgia Tech?� asks a personnel director.

Lorenzen Wright, Memphis--At 6-10, 230, this promising sophomore is shy on strength, fundamentals and shooting.

Darnell Robinson, Arkansas--A talented 6-11, 250-pound junior who was a disappointment on this level. Says a scout, “Looks like Benoit Benjamin in another life form.�

NAMES AND NUMBERS

There goes the theory they were too smart to burn themselves out going for a regular-season record: The Bulls, closing in on 70 victories, are showing wear and tear. Coach Phil Jackson, asked what he told the team after a loss at Toronto, replied, “What we talk about is private. It’s not your business.’ . . . When Sacramento’s Mitch Richmond fouled out and the United Center scoreboard played “Hit the Road, Jack,� Jackson strode to the scorer’s table and snarled, “I don’t want you to play that song. If you play it again, I’m going to rip your headphones off. That song is an embarrassment to the organization.�

Michael Jordan, closing in on his record eighth scoring title, has played every game, averaging a team-high 39 minutes. “I’m having enough trouble getting him out of games, much less taking a break during the season,� Jackson said. . . . Pippen, who played with ankle and back injuries, slumped, was supposed to rest for two weeks but came back a week early for the payback against the Knicks. He’s still limping and struggling. In a 12-game span, he averaged 13 points and shot 37%, against season averages of 20 points and 50%. “As for my ankle totally healing, I don’t think that’s gonna happen,� he said.

Too many J’s for one town: Jim Jackson, estranged from his Dallas Maverick teammates, is feuding with Jason Kidd again. “Yeah, there might need to be some changes,� Kidd said. “There’s nothing personal. Maybe jealousy.� Kidd said Friday that they had made up, but stay tuned . . . Maverick Coach-Personnel Director Dick Motta, who presided over this embarrassment, says he deserves to return. “If I thought there was someone out there, that I could tell [owner Don] Carter, ‘Go hire them and they’ll do the job better than me, I’d tell him,� Motta said. “But the kids know he’s backing me 100%. I don’t sense there’s any mutiny out there. They’re pretty good kids. It’s not a Nellie-type thing.� Not at all. Don Nelson did a much better job this season.

Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf’s season might have ended his Nugget career too. With fan protests continuing, management made up an injury and deactivated him. Someone can pick up an ace shooter cheap. . . . Now famous head-butted referee Ted Bernhardt: “Dennis [Rodman] barely got me, but there’s no question he meant to do it. The next few days I got a lot of calls from [referees] and some lawyers, asking me if I was sure I was OK. I think they wanted me to do something, but I really am OK.� . . . Bernhardt to scorers in Toronto last week: “Do your jobs or I’ll head-butt you.� . . . Emotional Piston Coach Doug Collins, asked about working with an expansion team: “I would be suicidal. I’d be like in that movie ‘Airplane,’ where everybody who sat beside the guy killed themselves.�