The Boston Globe

On basketball

PETER MAY

His attendance is mandatory

Philadelphia - Celtics general manager Chris Wallace entered the First Union Center last night with a guest. "It's an official series now," Wallace cracked, pointing to the man next to him, a man who needed no introduction to many NBA observers.

His name is Jim Goldstein. He is an NBA uberfan. He is known more for what can charitably be called his outlandish attire; last night's ensemble featured an orange hat and a black leather jacket. Needless to say, he is hard to miss.

This is Goldstein's time of year. You think Bill Walton is logging big miles in going form site to site during the playoffs? Goldstein was in Philly last night with plans to go to New Jersey today. Prior to that, he had been in Indianapolis (Tuesday), Salt Lake City (Monday), Portland (Sunday), and Salt Lake City (Saturday).

For this fan, attendance mandatory

"I had a day off on Friday," he said. "But I watched the games on television. And before that, I was in LA, Dallas, and Sacramento in three days." He attended 37 playoff games last year and hopes to match or surpass that this year.

This will go on until the NBA crowns its champion in June. Goldstein, who has a spectacular home at Coldwater Canyon in Los Angeles, has season tickets (two on the floor) for both the Clippers and Lakers. He briefly investigated purchasing Wilt Chamberlain's Bel air mansion "for investment purposes only." He decided it wasn't worth it.

Last year, he attended every conference finals games, which isn't so easy when one game is in Los Angeles one night and another is in Philadelphia the next. He plans on doing the same thing this year, which will be equally challenging.

Goldstein does it all on his own dime, of which he has many. His business card notes that he specializes in fashion, architecture, and basketball. He is a bit secretive about the source of his money, saying, "It's a mystery to most people in the NBA. Let's just say investments."

He has certain priorities for attending games on the road. The seats are almost always on the floor, which offers maximum exposure as well as the best view. Last night, he sat across from the 76ers' bench in a $588 seat. He bought it from a season ticket holder he met last year during the postseason.

"Sometimes the owners will give me tickets," he said. " Sometimes the team will sell me seats at face value. Sometimes I buy from ticket brokers. Or, like [last night], I met a fan. Same thing in Portland. I met a fan there and she sat in one of my seats in LA and I sat in one of her seats in Portland."

He doesn't scrimp on seats and he doesn't scrimp on accommodations. There is one plebian part of his itinerary - air travel.

"I stay in the best hotels. I try to buy the best tickets to the games. But, as partial compensation, I fly coach commercially," he said. Despite buying one-way tickets at the last moment, as well as er, different, look, he said he has rarely been searched at airports.

And the cost for his enterprise? Like the source of his money, as well as his age, don't ask.

"I don't total it up because then it wouldn't be any fun," he said. Asked if money was not an issue, he smiled, and said, "You could say that."

He also is single and has been all his life.

Where did this hoop fixation come from? Goldstein grew up in Milwaukee and was introduced to the NBA as a radio stat man for the old Milwaukee Hawks. When the Hawks moved to St. Louis, Goldstein still followed them and, in fact, said he sat in a courtside seat at Boston Garden next to Hawks owner Ben Kerner at the 1957 NBA Finals.

He moved to Los Angeles in 1962 and, by his estimate, has seen 98 percent of the NBA games in LA since them. In person. He was featured regularly in ESPN's show on the daily life of the Clippers ("The Season") and he's as recognizable a face at Staples Center as Phil Jackson or Shaq. But he's not a diehard Lakers fan.

"I'm famous in LA for being the anit-Laker fan," he said. "I think it comes from not growing up there. I've been a fan for so long that I have this purist's point of view and it becomes very difficult for me to root for the home team."

"Plus," he added, "it's part of my rebellious nature to go the other way."

Goldstein was in a particularly jovial mood last night because he had just received a copy of an article about him by the French fashion magazine Le Vogue. He took that as the ultimate endorsement of his sartorial taste. But he also was somewhat distressed in that his wardrobe was limited for this particular trip "because I decided to come East at the last minute and didn't have enough time to pack."

Yes, he might have to wear the same outfit twice, which, we suspect, would not be in vogue in Le Vogue. But Goldstein was front and center last night where he loves to be, watching the NBA and being watched, as well. The league has no better fan.