LAKERS REPORT
McKie's Roster Spot Uncertain
By Mike Bresnahan, Times Staff Writer
October 11, 2006
http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp...eadlines-sports

FRESNO - Aaron McKie could look around the Lakers locker room and see an
18-year-old, a 19-year old and then, if he held up a mirror, a
34-year-old.

The guard tries to keep things light-hearted as he heads into what would
be his 13th season, but he acknowledges he is near the end of his career.

"The fat lady is warming up her pipes," he said.

McKie averaged only 0.5 points in 14 games last season after being
sidelined because of a quadriceps tendon injury. He will make $2.5 million
this season, although the Lakers might waive him or try to trade him to
make room for one of their younger players, forward Devin Green or rookie
guard J.R. Pinnock. Waiving McKie would be a tough call, one that would
come toward the end of training camp and hinge primarily on one question -
youth or experience?

Including McKie, the Lakers have 13 players with guaranteed contracts, two
short of the league maximum. The contracts of Ronny Turiaf and Smush
Parker become guaranteed if they are still on the roster Nov. 1, a virtual
certainty that would put the Lakers at the 15-man capacity and leave the
team in a roster crunch if they want to keep Green or Pinnock, who have
non-guaranteed contracts.

The Lakers are more familiar with Green, a second-year forward who
averaged 0.9 points and five minutes in 27 games last season, but Pinnock
has had a decent training camp.

Selected 58th overall by the Dallas Mavericks in June's draft, Pinnock was
traded to the Lakers on draft day for a future second-round pick.

"He's picking up the offense," assistant coach Kurt Rambis said. "You feel
a lot of confidence when he shoots that the ball's going in."

Pinnock, who averaged 14.5 points last season for George Washington, still
has plenty of work to do if he is going to make the team.

"He's going to have to defend some really tough people," Rambis said. "And
he's going to have to show us consistent knowledge of the offense."

McKie did not play in Tuesday's exhibition opener against Utah. Green had
two points in four minutes and Pinnock went scoreless in five minutes.

The Lakers defeated Utah, 94-79, in front of an announced crowd of 9,713
at Save Mart Center in Fresno.

No Kobe Bryant and no Phil Jackson made the game less popular among the
local crowd, which filled less than two-thirds of the arena.

Lamar Odom, Parker, Kwame Brown, Luke Walton and Maurice Evans started for
the Lakers. Odom had 18 points, Parker and Sasha Vujacic each had 13, and
Evans had 12.

"They were the guys that gave us a good lift," Rambis said.

Utah guard and former Laker Derek Fisher was greeted warmly by the
pro-Lakers crowd.

Traded to the Jazz after two seasons with the Golden State Warriors,
Fisher will probably get more playing time with Utah than he would have
behind the Warriors' Baron Davis.

"It's a good place from him" Rambis said. "He's a system player. [Coach]
Jerry Sloan is going to love him."

Fisher had five points and five assists Tuesday.