NEW YORK -- In his latest episode of lateness, Isaiah Rider
missed the Los Angeles Lakers' charter flight to New York and had
to pay for his own ticket on a cross-country commercial flight.
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Rider arrived in New York late Saturday but was in uniform Sunday, playing 23 minutes and scoring seven points in the Lakers' 91-81 loss to the New York Knicks.
Rider also was fined an undisclosed amount, coach Phil Jackson
said.
"I was supposed to be there at 9, got there at 9:05 and the
plane was still there, but that's the rule. No big deal," Rider
said. "I got here and life goes on. I wasn't penalized for it -- a
couple hundred bucks, I think."
Rider has a history of lateness throughout his career, which has
included stops in Minnesota, Portland and Atlanta.
He has been late for practices and games several times this
season, including once in San Antonio when he missed the team bus
and showed up at the arena with a note from the manager of the team
hotel explaining that Rider had not received his wake-up call
because of a hotel employee's mistake.
In this case, the Lakers' charter flight was scheduled to leave
at 9 a.m., and Jackson said the team left after waiting five extra
minutes. Rider's agent called Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak
at 9:07 a.m. to say that Rider had arrived late, Jackson said.
"With J.R., as with a Dennis Rodman, (lateness) is not the
issue. The issue is about being ready to play on the court,"
Jackson said. "That's going to be part of their behavior, it's
going to be on the line or at the line or over the line. That's the
way they exist. It tells me something about his willingness and his
preparedness and desire."
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