Thursday, January 28, 1999
Big Shaq Daddy on attack when conference poll spurns Lakers
COLUMN: O’Neal plans to prove naysayers wrong, make statement on
court
Tuesday morning’s breakfast was all it took to get Shaq
motivated. No, it wasn’t some undercooked bacon, burnt eggs or even
sour orange juice. It was the reading material.
In the early morning hours prior to the Lakers’ final camp
workout, some players were passing around a copy of the USA Today
sports page. When the paper was passed to Shaq, he became seriously
upset.
"I just don’t understand what they’re looking at," said
O’Neal.
The bewilderment that Shaq expressed was over the rankings of
the Western Conference teams: San Antonio, Houston, Utah then Los
Angeles. Number four? In their own conference?
The Lakers return the core of their team that went to the
conference finals last year. Well, they did lose Nick Van Exel who
was last seen exiled in Denver, which is just that much further
from Cancun. (Van Exel was chastised by the club for his refusal to
join team huddles in the fourth game of the Jazz sweep, instead
choosing to chant, "I’m going to Cancun.")
In the wake of Van Exel’s self-humiliation, the Lakers
unquestionably have the most talent in the NBA. With Kobe, Eddie,
Horry, Rick Fox, and the two Dereks – Harper and Fisher – at the
point, "The Lake Show" will be the envy of the league.
They are also the youngest team in the league, a factor that
will definitely bode well in this rigorous "50 games in 90 days"
season.
Oh yeah, I forgot about the X-factor – Big Shaq Daddy. There is
no center in the league that can bang with No. 34. No player in the
league can dominate a game the way Shaquille O’Neal does. Knock his
free throws all you want, but when the man averages 30 points and
15 boards per game, I’ll accept 54 percent from the free throw
line.
As for Shaq, he is taking this slap in the face as personally as
possible. This is stellar news for Laker fans. Shaq is incredibly
talented in his own right, and a little extra motivation is the
last thing that opposing players need.
And is he motivated.
"You know, they’re (the Spurs) a pretty dominant big-man tandem,
but ain’t none of them can do nothing with me," said the Kazaam
star.
Grammar aside, that is a pretty hefty statement to make about
the league’s newest "Twin Towers." A pair of nimble, game-breaking
7-footers can definitely hold their own against one guy. That is,
if the guy in question is not Shaq.
"And I said it. And you can tell them I said it. If they don’t
like it, they can see me on the court or off the court. They can’t
do nothing with me."
Shaq can most certainly back this comment up. His Lakers swept
the season series from the Spurs last year, with O’Neal having some
of his biggest games against the formidable duo.
You see, Shaq was already agitated by the behavior of the
Admiral.
When Shaq was a sophomore in high school, his team was taken to
the Spurs’ locker room, and he wanted to meet his idol at the time
– David Robinson. Shaq’s side of the story says that Robinson
spurned him and refused to sign an autograph or take a picture.
Since then, No. 34 has been taking out his disdain for D-Rob on the
court, averaging nearly five points and two rebounds per game more
than his season averages in games against the Spurs.
And Tim Duncan? Well, Shaq has never been one to mince words:
"I’ve got to let them know once again – Tim Duncan, you’re too
light for me down there."
Duncan is about an inch shorter than Shaq, but roughly 60 pounds
lighter, and though Duncan was Rookie of the Year during the
1997-98 season, he is not in the same neighborhood as Shaq.
Speaking of neighborhoods, didn’t David Robinson used to have
his own … nevermind, that was in the pre-Shaq era.
Shaq did not speak about Houston and Utah, choosing instead to
remain commentless, no doubt ready to torch the elder statesmen of
the league and make his statement on the court. The Lakers play the
two teams within the first week of the season.
So Shaq proved once and for all that breakfast is the most
important meal of the day. And come June, when Shaq and the Lakers
are holding the championship trophy, the rest of the NBA will agree
too.
Evan Lovett is probably still sleeping, recovering from a
hangover after last night’s shenanigans. E-mail him at
[email protected]
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