[LA Times] Lakers agree to terms with McKie; end pursuit of Anderson

http://www.latimes.com/sports/baske...974.story?coll=la-headlines-sports-nba-lakers

Lakers Point to McKie
By Mark Heisler, Times Staff Writer

Ending their search for a point guard, or at least a Phil Jackson-type point guard, the Lakers have agreed to terms with another candidate no one could have predicted, Aaron McKie.

"We've come to an agreement," said McKie's agent, Leon Rose, from his home in Pennsauken, N.J., Sunday. "Everything will get done over the course of the next few days.

"The Lakers approached him with a nice offer. He had a long talk with Coach Jackson regarding the situation and the role he can play was something that appealed to him.

"Coach Jackson has had a lot of success with veteran big guards and hopefully Aaron can have the same kind of success and bring the team a defensive presence.

"He's also looking forward to playing with Kobe Bryant. He's known him a long time from their days in Philadelphia."

The agreement is for two years and $5 million. The Lakers had no comment.

The agreement with McKie is expected to end negotiations with Derek Anderson, another big veteran guard who received a similar offer but was expected to take less and sign with the Houston Rockets.

Having traded Chucky Atkins, last season's starter, the Lakers have been looking for a successor in Jackson's unconventional mold, in which size and attitude count more than youth, athleticism, scoring ability — or even any experience as a point guard.

In Jackson's triangle offense, the point guard is called the "initiator." He sets things up and makes the first pass but doesn't control the ball as much as a conventional point guard and doesn't have to be as good a playmaker.

When Jackson arrived with the Lakers in 1999, he benched starting point guard Derek Fisher, who had just gotten a five-year, $15-million contract, and brought in bigger, older Ron Harper to replace him. Harper had played shooting guard for his entire career until Jackson switched him to "initiator" with the Bulls in 1995 at age 31.

A shooting guard throughout his career, the 6-foot-5, 210-pound McKie will be 33 in October. He is known as a tough competitor with a stand-up-guy reputation but his career has declined sharply since he started for the 76ers, who lost to the Lakers in the 2001 NBA Finals.

Last season, new 76er Coach Jim O'Brien parked McKie on the bench for the first half of the season to go with younger players. McKie got back into the rotation, averaging 21 minutes a game after the All-Star break, but his 2.2 average was by far the lowest of his career.

Anderson offered the Lakers a younger (31), more athletic option, averaging 9.2 points last season in Portland, although he missed 66 games in his last two seasons there. However, the Lakers weren't convinced he was the defender and leader they wanted. Anderson is known as sunny and likable but his attitude was questioned by people in Portland. He reportedly didn't take it as a compliment when the Lakers asked him about it during his visit here two weeks ago.

Last week for the first time, the Lakers contacted McKie's agent, Rose. Until then, McKie had been expected to take a $1.1-million offer to back up Vince Carter in New Jersey.

By then, Anderson was reportedly leaning toward the Rockets, who could offer him only $1.7 million but made him feel he was the player they wanted.

The Lakers then made similar offers to McKie and Anderson, hoping to assure themselves of getting one of them.

With a $2.5-million slot left, the Lakers would like to add a small, quick guard or a big man. Their top guard prospect, former Laker Tyrone Lue, is expected to re-sign in Atlanta.

Still on the Lakers' list and available are former UCLA Bruin Earl Watson and former Laker Jannero Pargo. With a short list of big men to choose from, a return by Vlade Divac may be possible.