June 6, 2001 fiortlanò tôbserurr Page B3 ÿlorUanù ©beeruer Metro/Sports Lakers Open Finals With 19 Game Win Streak (AP) — Allen Iverson is glad that most people don’t think the Philadelphia 76ers can beat the Los Angeles Lakers in the NBA Finals. “ Everybody has counted us out, and I feel good about that,” Iverson said Monday. “All the pressure is on them. It’s like David vs. Goliath. Everybody picks the Lakers be­ cause they look like the sure shot. That’s fine with us. We like it that way.” The Lakers, who haven’t lost in more than two months, take a 19- game winning streak into Game 1 of the finals Wednesday night at the Staples Center. Los Angeles is a 12-point favorite in the opener. Philadelphia, making its first trip to the finals in 18 years, is coming off consecutive seven-game series. “ A nybody who is going to play the Lakers after they won 19 s tra ig h t would be con­ sidered an un­ derdog against them ,” Sixers c o a ch L arry B row n said . “But I know my team, I believe in them and you n ev e r know w h at th ese guys can ac­ Allen Iverson leads his 76ers into the NBA Finals against the Lakers. complish.” The Sixers franchise-best 10 straight victories. have been proving people wrong The team has overcome numerous since they began the season with a injuries, including a broken foot that has kept forward George Lynch out o f the last 10 games. “When things don’t look good, people count us out, and that's when we pull together,” Aaron McKie said. “We don’t want to go out there just to be there. Our focus is to win the series. Whether it’s here or there doesn’t make a difference.” The series w ould’ve opened at the First Union Center if the Sixers had beaten the last-place Chicago Bulls on the final day o f the regu­ lar season. Instead, Iverson and Dikembe Mutombo sat out, and Brown rested most o f his other starters to prepare for the playoffs. It took a late 10-0 run for the Bulls, who finished with a league-worst 15-67 record, to beat Philadelphia’s re­ serves 92-86. The loss tied the Sixers with the Lakers at 56-26. Los Angeles got the homecourt edge on a tiebreaker — better record against the oppo­ site conference. After the loss to Chicago, Brown said he wasn ’ t looking ahead to the finals, didn't want to risk injury to any o f his key players and was more concerned with getting out of the East. Brown said Monday he doesn’t have any regrets about the way he handled the final game. “I didn’t rest the guys just to rest them,” Brown said. “They were le­ gitim ately hurt. I ’m not smart enough to plan that far ahead. If I had to do it all over again, I’d do it the same way.” Iverson didn’t play against the Bulls because he was on the in­ jured list with bursitis in his right elbow, an injury that continues to bother him and forces him to wear a protective sleeve on his arm. Mutombo had a sprained toe and missed his only game since coming to the Sixers in a trade on Feb. 22. “Them having the homecourt is just another adverse situation, and we’re motivated by that,” McKie said. Los Angeles has never lost Game 1 o f a playoff series since Phil Jack- son became its coach last season, posting double-digit victories in all but one of its seven series-open­ ing games. Rice Moves Across Major League Representative Visits PGE Park Bay to Raiders ALAMEDA, Calif.(AP) — Jerry Rice officially moved across San Francisco Bay on Tuesday, becom­ ing a member o f the Oakland Raid­ ers. “I’m glad to be here, I’m glad to be a p a rt o f th is ,” R ice said, thank­ ing the Raid­ ers fo r “ a ch a n ce to continue do­ ing what I ’ve been doing for 16 years.” A fte r a r e c o rd -s e t­ tin g ca ree r with (AP) - A representative from Major League Baseball visited Portland on Thursday to see if the city would be a good place to relocate a strug­ gling franchise. Some baseball fans think that Portland is ready for a major league team. They also think the timing is right because the Montreal Expos and the Tampa Bay Devil Rays are suffering fi­ nancial losses and might want to move. “We have a long-term strat­ egy to bring major league base­ ball to Portland, and w e’re right on course,” said Steve Kanter, president of the Or­ egon Baseball Coalition, who helped arrange Corey Busch’s visit. league, to come to a team o f this magnitude, I’m excited about the possibilities,” Rice said. “It was time to move on, and this is prob­ ably a great situation where I can the ________________ 49ers, Rice j e rry f t j c e d idn’t want to stray far from his mansion, his family or his fans after being re­ leased by San Francisco on Mon­ day because o f salary cap prob­ lems. Rice, who won three Super Bowls with the 49ers, moves from a re­ building team to a squad that reached the AFC Championship Game last season. “I’m living a dream right now. A situation like this doesn’t happen that often. After 16 years in the « AFFORDABLE jum p-start my career again.” Rice, who holds every signifi­ cant NFL receiving mark, has said he would like to play at least two more years. He wore his usual No. 80 — but in Raiders silver and black instead ofhis familiar49ers colors — while participating in an informal prac­ tice session Tuesday morning. “Hey, I look good in it, man,” Rice joked. “I was saying, Hey guys, I look pretty good.’” 7 « ^Ljoux ¿J/ome. comL REMODELING 4 REPAIRS. TOOL A GARDEN SHEDS. FENCES, DECKS, PORCHES. DRY ROT, CERAMIC TILE. $49.95 includes 2 days & 2 nights Round trip fare. Free breakfast & $20.00 refund upon arrival. Slot machines, video poker, blackjack, craps, keno, bingo. 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