Jackson’s Best-Laid Plans Bulldozed by Redeveloper

Winners, losers and coin tosses:

Losers: Lakers.

They believed that either Toni Kukoc or Larry Hughes would enable them to overtake Portland. Both were traded Wednesday, neither to the Lakers.

Did anyone really believe Jerry Krause would help a Phil Jackson team move closer to a championship?

Winner: Tex Winter.

The man who taught Michael Jordan the triangle offense accepted a more daunting challenge when Jackson assigned his assistant coach to assist Shaquille O’Neal with free throws.

Professor Henry Higgins had an easier task with Eliza Doolittle in “My Fair Lady,” but it appears as if Shaq might finally have it.

I know I might be speaking too soon, like before Wednesday night’s game at Charlotte. But, in the two most recent games before that, he had made 26 of 32 from the line, including 11 of 12 in Tuesday night’s victory over the Bulls.

Now if Shaq can learn to rap to “I Could Have Danced All Night” . . .

Loser: Dan Marino.

He should have gone out with a ticker-tape parade, announcing his retirement the day after the season ended and accepting plaudits as the best passer in NFL history.

Instead, he voided his contract while leaving the distinct impression that he wanted the Miami Dolphins to offer him a new one.

Meantime, the Dolphins made it as clear as possible without saying it that they prefer to go with Damon Huard and Jim Druckenmiller next season.

Now, it has been reported that the Dolphins, seeking a third quarterback, are talking to Jay Fiedler.

Marino apparently was better at reading defenses than the writing on the wall.

Loser: Jeff George.

The Minnesota Vikings had only good things to say about the much-traveled quarterback last season. They apparently didn’t tell the whole story.

Coach Dennis Green is all too willing to let him leave as a free agent and turn the team back over to Randall Cunningham or Daunte Culpepper.

George wants to return to Minnesota. Which quarterback wouldn’t with those receivers? But the Vikings say they’re saving room under the salary cap for Mitch Berger, the punter.

Winner: Elizabeth Heskett.

There is life after retirement, especially if you retire at 14.

That’s what Heskett did, leaving Bela Karolyi’s high-profile, high-pressure gym in Houston and a promising gymnastics career in 1991.

“I wanted to make some high school memories that I would have for the rest of my life,” said Heskett, who returned home to Ontario and became a cheerleader.

But, three years ago, Vince Beresford, the pastor for college students at her church, suggested that she take up pole vaulting.

“OK,” she said. “What’s pole vaulting?”

Beresford was the right person to ask because he is a former pole vaulter who now coaches women. Heskett since has vaulted 12 feet 1 but believes she will clear 14-6 or higher by the end of the summer, which could be high enough to make the Olympic team.

Losers: Men’s pole vaulters.

Since last summer, when Stacy Dragila of Pocatello, Idaho, won a dramatic competition at the World Championships in Spain, the women’s pole vault has become track and field’s hottest event.

That has come at the expense of the men. With too little time during meets to hold two pole-vault competitions, promoters this year have opted more often than not for the women.

The L.A. Indoor Invitational on Saturday at the Sports Arena is one of the rare meets with both.

Loser: Bud Selig.

Major league baseball commissioned a study by two Harvard researchers on androstenedione, the dietary supplement that Mark McGwire made famous.

More than one year later, the results are in. Andro, according to the findings, raises testosterone levels and could be hazardous to your health.

Selig’s reaction was to order more studies.

If it had been determined that John Rocker was taking the stuff, I bet Selig would have taken some real action.

Coin toss: CIF Southern Section.

If one purpose of high school is, as Heskett said, to make memories, there is little harm in enabling as many players as possible to experience postseason play.

So it’s hard to be too critical of the decision that sends all teams with 10 or more wins into the playoffs as long as they submit a petition.

At the same time, it’s possible that the lesson that high school athletes will learn from such a system is that mediocrity is rewarded. Why should teams strive to be among the best when less will get them into the playoffs?

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Randy Harvey can be reached at his e-mail address: [email protected]