Columnist Ron Kantowski: Johnson reveals his true character to Knicks

Ron Kantowski's notes column appears Tuesday and Thursday. Reach him at [email protected] or 259-4088.

Even before he left UNLV, Larry Johnson seemed to develop a boorish attitude with a large chip on his shoulder, the likes of which not even the Keebler folks have seen.

Given that Sports Illustrated has charged him with fathering an entire starting five and a couple of reserves out of wedlock, you could say that Grand Ma-ma's sperm count is higher than his scoring average these days.

But Johnson's latest sexual indiscretion might not have been as distasteful as reported.

A Bloomberg News story that moved on the sports wires last week said that the NBA and the Knicks were investigating Johnson after a story in New York magazine said he had exposed himself to Knicks public relations director Lori Hamamoto.

The Sun obtained a copy of the article, which actually was one paragraph in a treatise on Latrell Sprewell. This is what it said:

Johnson likes to try to trick the Knicks' young publicist, Lori Hamamoto, into seeing him naked: "Ha-shi-mo-to," he'll say, uncrossing his legs and pretending to lift his towel. "Look over here and tell me what was my free-throw percentage tonight."

Note that the story said "pretending" to lift the towel.

Sure, it wasn't the politically correct thing to do. It probably was even stupid. But presented in that context, one might surmise that Johnson, at least in his mind, was just teasing Hamamoto with a bit of lockerroom banter, as if she were "one of the guys."

Regardless, the report didn't make interim club president Dave Checketts very happy.

"It's been said that winning builds character and losing reveals it," Checketts said of the Johnson incident.

Maybe Johnson would be wise to keep his character hidden behind a towel as well.

* GLORY DAZE: Which of the following records likely is never to be broken?

* Joe DiMaggio's 56-game hitting streak.

* Wayne Gretzky's 894 lifetime goals.

* Wilt Chamberlain's 50.4 scoring average in 1962.

* Nevada State Athletic Commissioner Glenn Carano's streak of reminding onlookers at regular NSAC meetings that he played professional football.

* STRUMM SOLO: Although he won't admit it or hangs up when you ask, Bob Strumm, general manager of the doomed Las Vegas Thunder, is headed back to the National Hockey League.

An NHL front-office source told the Sun that Strumm has accepted a scouting post with the Columbus Blue Jackets, an NHL expansion team that will begin play in fall 2000.

During his Las Vegas tenure, Strumm (who was an assistant GM with the Red Wings before they were any good) had more detractors than the back 40 at Herve Villechaize Farms. But he'll make a fine scout, if for no other reason he's thorough. Strumm maintains an elaborate filing system that contains a 3x5 index card or a loose-leaf note on virtually every player in pro hockey.

* GERG'S THE GLUE: Former UNLV basketball assistant and head-coach-for-a-month Tim Grgurich, who belatedly received much of the praise for Jerry Tarkanian's overwhelming success, is reprising his role as unsung hero, this time as an assistant to Mike Dunleavy with the NBA's Portland Trail Blazers.

As Sports Illustrated reader Ken Boyer (obviously not the late third baseman) points out in a letter in the recent issue, the magazine "left out a key ingredient in the (Blazers') success" in a story about the Blazers' winning ways.

"Grgurich spent the last several years with the Seattle SuperSonics, for whom he provided the glue to hold a fragile team together," Boyer writes. "The Blazers are cohesive and winning. The difference is Grgurich."

* TROTTER FODDER: After all these years, the Harlem Globetrotters want to be taken seriously.

They're starting a three-game tour in Oakland Sunday and they've told the Washington Generals to stay home.

The Trotters say they will leave the comedy routine in the lockerroom for a three-game, three-city exhibition series against a group of top college seniors. They've even hired former Washington Wizards coach Bernie Bickerstaff as a consultant.

"This is different," said Trotters owner Mannie Jackson, who once granted Bob Stupak's wish by letting the Las Vegas icon suit up with the Trotters during their ... well, not-so-serious days. "This goes back to our roots. There will be some skepticism at first. But the players' athleticism could be a show in itself. These are serious games."

Among the NBA prospects expected to play are Cincinnati guard Melvin Leavitt, Minnesota swingman Quincy Lewis, Iowa forward J.R. Koch and guard Ricky Moore of national champ UConn.

* TENNIS, NO ONE: This is why men's tennis is hurting more than the Cubs' pitching staff. Yevgeny Kafelnikov -- the Yevgeny Kafelnikov -- will become the world's top ranked player next week.

But that's only part of the problem. Kafelnikov will become No. 1 even if he loses this weekend -- and despite the fact he hasn't won a match since late February and has lost five times in a row.

Forget the Mountain West Conference. The UNLV men's basketball team should join the ATP Tour.

Pete Sampras will fall from the top slot, because he has withdrawn from this week's tournament in Atlanta. As a result, he'll lose 172 ranking points and slip to second behind Kafelnikov in the tour computer, which obviously has nothing to fear from Y2K.

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