It looks like the playoff hype is in full effect. The NBA released a commercial that features Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’neil delivering the same monologue. The NBA playoffs being on April 19th.
Is the NBA predicting a Lakers vs. Suns playoff. I think that David Stern’s dream may come true this year if the Suns’ Shaq and Nash can make a push towards the end of the season.
Source: si.com
PHOENIX — There is always built-in tension whenever Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant step onto the same floor. It’s like being at a party and seeing a couple of divorcees in the same room with their new spouses. You can’t help but dart your eyes back and forth at both of them as if you were watching a tennis match.
Bryant simply shakes his head and rolls his eyes at such analogies. It’s the one subject he hates more than any other despite his insistence that there is no animosity between he and O’Neal more than three years after the two went their separate ways.
“I do not care about that for the last time, geez,” Bryant said when asked about the prospect of playing against O’Neal in his Suns debut. “It makes me sick. How many times have we played in All-Star games and [against his teams]? You know? People want to continue to beat a dead horse. Yeah, it’ll be fun … same old generic stuff.”
Bryant was partly right. While there may no longer be a feud between Bryant and O’Neal — they embraced each other at center court before Wednesday’s game and wished each other luck — the Lakers’ game against the Suns was anything but “same old generic stuff.” If anything, it was a glimpse at the newest championship contender in the ever-evolving Western Conference.
After being eliminated by Phoenix in the first round of the playoffs the past two seasons, the Lakers see the Suns as a measuring stick. They understand that the road to the Pacific Division title and past the first round of the playoffs goes through Phoenix. They acquired Pau Gasol, in part, to get past the Suns, and four days later the Suns traded for O’Neal to keep pace.
The recent blockbuster trades created an unusually electric February playoff-type atmosphere at the US Airways Center. Not only was it O’Neal’s debut as a Sun and the last game between the Lakers and Suns this season, but first place and the series tiebreaker were up for grabs. Fans showed up in Suns No. 32 jerseys and “The Suns Will Rise” T-shirts, in honor of the phrase O’Neal coined during his introductory press conference.
It was the Lakers, however, who used the national stage as their debut of sorts. While they have won six consecutive games, Wednesday night’s 130-124 win showed the Lakers are not only legitimate title contenders, but when healthy — Andrew Bynum, Trevor Ariza and Chris Mihm are expected back by season’s end — they could very well be the favorites to win their first championship since they shipped a certain 7-foot-1 center out of town.
The Lakers’ current squad looks and plays like the Suns once did; they’re able to turn a close game into a double-digit advantage within minutes, with a high-energy unit that resembles an attacking soccer team at times, coming at you in waves. The only difference is this team has the size and the closer (Bryant) that the Suns never had.
Rarely has a midseason trade changed the culture of a team as quickly as Gasol’s move to L.A. did. There has been little to no adjustment period for him as he has pick-and-rolled and backdoored his way into the Lakers’ offense within days and has become the perfect complement to Bryant. While Bryant scored a game-high 41 points, it was Gasol (29 points) who energized the team with a couple of crucial dunks and chest bumps after the fact.
At one point during the fourth quarter, Gasol sprinted toward the basket for a breakaway dunk that caused him to grab his jersey and scream while Sasha Vujacic jumped into his arms. It was the kind of energy the Lakers, criticized in the past for deferring to Bryant and having a splintered locker room, hadn’t seen in years.
It may take a few more weeks before O’Neal’s impact on the Suns is fully realized, but his debut went better than expected by most, including coach Mike D’Antoni. “So much for playing him 20 minutes,” D’Antoni joked after the game when looking at the stat sheet and O’Neal’s 28:45 of playing time.
O’Neal showed glimpses of the player the Suns hoped he would be, overpowering Gasol and DJ Mbenga on a pair of two-handed dunks, swatting away a shot by Lamar Odom and throwing a perfect behind-the-back pass to Leandro Barbosa. He also showed glimpses of the player who looked on the verge of retirement in Miami, unable to stay on the floor during crucial stretches when the Lakers built up their lead.
“I will take the blame for this loss because I wasn’t in tune with the guys, but give me four or five days and I’ll get it,” said O’Neal, who finished with 15 points and nine rebounds. “Once we get used to each other, we’re going to be the most dangerous team ever created. I’m actually in better shape than I thought I was. It’s just the last couple of years that these knick-knack injuries have slowed me down so you earthlings automatically think that I can’t run, but Steve Nash has instructed me to get my Randy Moss on and get down the court.”
For the first time since winning a title with MIami in 2006, there was no doubt O’Neal looked rejuvenated. He dived for a loose ball. He sprinted to the other end of the court after Bryant goaltended one of his shots.
“I need to prove something to myself; this is the final chapter of my book,” O’Neal said. “I only have 730 days left, two years and change, and when I sit down and look at my book, I want to have five or six championships under my belt. If I have four, I’ll be a bitter old man. I told them don’t build the offense around me. I’m 36 years old [in March], Amaré [Stoudemire] is 25 — he’s going to be the first option and I just have to accept this role and dominate this role.”
While O’Neal attempts to role-play his way into another championship in the twilight of his career, Bryant is still in the prime of his and may be on his deepest, quickest team ever. Whether that will result in his first championship without O’Neal is yet to be determined.
“It’s the best team I’ve been on in a while, but I’ve also been on teams that were part of a three-peat,” Bryant said. “I think the collection of players that we have here in terms of our youth, length, athletic ability and versatility is something special. Everyone on the floor is a playmaker. Everybody gets along, and that’s something new for us.”
PHOENIX — Shaquille O’Neal says he is ready to run with the Phoenix Suns. Really.
“I’m going to be looking to get out like Randy Moss and Terrell Owens,” he said Tuesday after going through his final workout before making his debut with the Suns on Wednesday night against his old team, the Lakers.
The prospect of the 7-foot-1, 325-pound O’Neal, at age 35, fitting in with the high-octane Suns has been ridiculed across much of the NBA.
The Lakers’ Phil Jackson, O’Neal’s former coach, said Shaq’s role would be “taking the ball out of bounds and waiting for the other team to get back.”
“He’s a jokester, and that’s funny, very funny,” Shaq said without smiling. “Ha-ha. Very funny.”
Suns coach Mike D’Antoni says people will be surprised about how well a motivated O’Neal can move, and playmaker Steve Nash was elated with the trade that brought O’Neal from Miami for Shawn Marion and Marcus Banks.
“We’re going to have to adjust slightly to his strengths,” Nash said, “but you know where he’s strong we’ve been weak, and that’s having a big presence in the paint, taking up space and guarding the rim.”
O’Neal says he has no desire to be a star with his new team. Those roles belong to Nash and Amare Stoudemire, he said.
“I’m more like a senior adviser so I don’t like to come in here and try to take over,” O’Neal said. … “Just like your basic karate movie where the young guys come to the old guys with beards who have them do weird stuff to get to the other side. That’s who I am, the old guy with a long beard.”
Long pause.
“You like that analogy?” he said, obviously pleased with himself. “That was pretty good?”
Nash was a willing sidekick.
“I think this is his 73rd Asian martial arts film,” he said. “We’re excited to learn from the great master.”
Shaq’s charisma and humor have energized the Suns franchise since last week’s trade, with the anticipation building toward Wednesday night’s showdown with Jackson, Kobe Bryant, newcomer Pau Gasol and the rest of the Lakers. O’Neal insisted there is nothing special about the opponent being the Lakers, other than the fact that it’s a tough Pacific Division foe.
“We had more great times than bad times together, but they’ve moved on, I’ve moved on,” O’Neal said. “I have a new team now and I have a new focus.”
Still, Jackson’s comments have not been brushed aside.
“I don’t take anything personal,” O’Neal said. “I just have a certain file in my head, so Earthlings must be careful with what they say.”
O’Neal is part of a recent migration of talent to the already-tough Western Conference, with Gasol going to the Lakers from Memphis and, in a trade finalized on Tuesday, Jason Kidd to the Dallas Mavericks from New Jersey.
There will be no time for O’Neal to ease into his new role. After the Lakers, the Suns are home to Boston on Friday night and Detroit on Sunday.
“We don’t have three cupcakes to start, but that’s all right,” Nash said. “We’re going to learn a lot about ourselves and where we’re going, and maybe that will give us a steeper learning curve to play against terrific teams.”
O’Neal has played in four games since injuring his left hip while diving for a loose ball Dec. 22 against Utah. He returned Jan. 16, but was sidelined again after a Jan. 24 game against Cleveland.
He said his hip feels good but will play only about 20 minutes against the Lakers, D’Antoni said. O’Neal will be in the starting lineup.
“We know that’s our team,” D’Antoni said. “Let’s get there as quickly as we can. Also, it’s a 48-minute game, to spread 20 minutes out of 48 you don’t want him to warm up and then sit down and get cold.”
O’Neal said he hasn’t played with a passer as good as Nash since his days with Bryant and, before that in Orlando, Scott Skiles.
“I can remember playing with Scott Skiles if you were open an inch, that would be there and it would be there perfect every time,” O’Neal said. “When you’ve got a guy that’s going to look for you, you run. A lot of people think I can’t run, but my thing was I wasn’t going to be running if you’re not going to throw it. I know Nash will throw it.”
O’Neal said he’s learned a lot watching the Suns play from the bench, enough to make him believe that this team can win an NBA title, something the franchise hasn’t achieved in its 40-year history.
“Their unselfishness, the way they play and their poise factor,” he said. “When you never panic, that’s a great sign.”
He said he needs that fifth title, and maybe a sixth, to cement the legacy he covets.
“Every time that I’ve won a championship I’ve looked at my guys around me and looked at their work ethic and said ‘You know what, I’m going to win it this year,’” O’Neal said. “I feel that way now.”
I know its “Wild” Bill’s personality to be argumentative, but to call Shaq out because of injuries is as arrogant as anything I’ve heard in a long time. Both are big babies. Though Walton is an idiot, Shaq is a bigger stooge if he thinks he can carry the Suns to a championship.
The Gasol Trade
The Lakers stole Pau Gasol. They hi-jacked him. That should be a crime. You don’t give away Pau Gasol for Kwame Brown and a rookie. I don’t care what’s out there, you can get more than that. You gave away a $100 bill and you got back two nickels and a dime. Now the Lakers are a top four team, maybe even higher in the Western Conference. You have Bynum and the five and Pau at the four? That means you have two scorers who are 7-foot plus at the four and the five, which reminds me of David Robinson and Tim Duncan. Then you have Lamar Odom, who’s a 7-footer at the three and he gets to play free and do all the stuff he’s capable of doing, and then they have Mr. 81 at the two. You can put anybody at the one. Who cares who’s the one. I mean, they have their championship, veteran one in Derek Fisher, but that’s just a huge plus. You don’t even need him.
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