Van Exel, Harris Agree on a Truce

The Nick Van Exel-Del Harris feud that in many ways overshadowed the Lakers’ exit from the playoffs apparently got its resolution Thursday. During a brief but sometimes emotional meeting at the Forum, Van Exel told Harris and Jerry West he can indeed coexist with his coach and wants to play here.

It is almost certain he will. The Lakers did not want to trade him anyway, aware of the lack of available quality replacements and of Van Exel’s talent, but the point guard and team captain could have forced such a move if he had insisted his relationship with Harris was beyond repair.

His comments during the 30-minute conference in the office of West, the executive vice president, were quite the opposite, with a conciliatory Van Exel taking his share of the blame for the strained feelings and committing himself to making the partnership work.

“It means he has a future with the team and that he stays with the team,” said one person close to the situation. “It means that he’ll be happy to stay with the team. He said he has no problems.”

Van Exel declined an interview request. But through Laker spokesman John Black, he said the meeting allowed him to get a lot of emotions off his chest, from some that predate his dealings with Harris to the offense, and confirmed that he no longer has any problem with Harris.

In short, it went as well as West could have hoped, with the cooling-off period since the season ended in disappointment Monday playing the role he had also hoped. West’s comments from Tuesday--”We can’t have a player complaining about a coach when maybe he should look in the mirror himself”--likewise appear to have made a difference.

Van Exel said in the meeting he did just that. He used the previous couple of days for some soul searching and understanding his role in the tenuous relationship with Harris that has resulted in a series of confrontations. The most visible was Saturday at the Forum in Game 4 of the Western Conference semifinals against the Utah Jazz, when Van Exel apparently waved off his coach’s request in the opening moments to come to the bench for instructions. He was yanked with 1:57 gone and then began screaming vulgarities. With everything in full view of the fans, and captured by television cameras, Harris responded by waving a finger of admonishment in Van Exel’s face.

Off-season soul searching is nothing new for Van Exel. He proclaimed to have a new attitude heading into 1996-97, but conflicts still arose because of what Harris said is a problem dealing with authority.

“I really like Nick, but he has to realize that somebody’s going to have to coach him,” Harris said Tuesday. “Anybody who ignores my signals is going to come out of the game. Hopefully, he will get the emotional part together. It’s his biggest strength, and his weakness.”

There was progress this last season, though, with Van Exel seeming more mature and relaxed and the blowups less frequent, even if one in late March is known to have gotten very heated. The Lakers are now trusting this summer will bring more of the same growth. They have little choice but to believe.

The meeting also focused on the conflict over how to best run the Laker offense. Harris and Van Exel agree this should be a running team, something obvious in appearance but difficult to pull off when rebounding proves inconsistent and the point guard holds on to the ball too long. More than anything, it’s a difference in perception between people who want the same thing.