[0] REUNITED AND IT FEELS SO GOOD O'NEAL, BRYANT PUT ASIDE DIFFERENCES, WORK TOGETHER IN LAKERS' WIN VS. CAVS LAKERS 101, CLEVELAND 98.Byline: Howard Beck Staff Writer Kobe Bryant Kobe Bean Bryant (born July 23 1978) is an American All-Star shooting guard in the National Basketball Association (NBA) who plays for the Los Angeles Lakers. and Shaquille O'Neal Shaquille Rashaun O'Neal (pronounced "shak-KEEL") (born March 6, 1972 in Newark, New Jersey), frequently referred to simply as Shaq, is an American professional basketball player, generally regarded as one of the most dominant in the National Basketball Association (NBA). did not exchange blows, insults or sneers Friday night. There was no new layer to add to the stack of bizarre quotes, innuendo innuendo n. from Latin innuere, "to nod toward." In law it means "an indirect hint." "Innuendo" is used in lawsuits for defamation (libel or slander), usually to show that the party suing was the person about whom the nasty statements were made or why the comments and rumors that piled up in the Lakers' locker room. A timeout - and the Lakers hope, a permanent one - was called in the All-Star Smackdown that dominated the week's news, as the Lakers at last turned to a common enemy. OK, so the Cleveland Cavaliers The Cleveland Cavaliers (also known as the Cavs) are a professional basketball team based in Cleveland, Ohio. They began playing in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a 1970 expansion team and won their first Eastern Conference Championship in 2007. do not qualify for Snidely Whiplash Snidely Whiplash is the cartoon villain who is archnemesis to Dudley Do-Right in the tongue-in-cheek series The Dudley Do-Right Show by American animation pioneer Jay Ward. status, but any foe that could unite the fractious frac·tious adj. 1. Inclined to make trouble; unruly. 2. Having a peevish nature; cranky. [From fraction, discord (obsolete). Lakers seemed welcome. O'Neal and Bryant joined forces once more and led the Lakers to a 101-98 victory before a relieved 18,997 at Staples Center This article has multiple issues: * Its neutrality is disputed. * It may contain original research or unverifiable claims. * It does not cite any references or sources. . It wasn't among the Lakers' most convincing or most aesthetic wins of the season, but anything was a welcome break after a week in which O'Neal called Bryant selfish, coach Phil Jackson
Philip Douglas "Phil" Jackson (born September 17, 1945 in Deer Lodge, Montana) is the current coach of the Los Angeles Lakers, an American professional basketball team. blasted his players for being ``juvenile'' and just about everyone but Mike Penberthy Mike Penberthy (born November 29, 1974 in Los Gatos, California), is an American professional basketball player. A 6'3" guard from Master's College, Penberthy was not drafted by an NBA team but did manage to play for the Los Angeles Lakers for two years (2000-01 to 2001-02). asked to be traded. O'Neal shook off his own frustration and moodiness to post one of his most dominant performances in weeks - 34 points and a season-high 23 rebounds. Bryant, restrained early and aggressive late, scored 32 points on 10-for-25 shooting. And the only time the Lakers' stars swung at each other was for a high- five in the first quarter, after Bryant fed O'Neal for a dunk with a nifty behind-the-back pass. In the new era of peaceful coexistence Peaceful coexistence was a theory developed during the Cold War among Communist states that they could peacefully coexist with capitalist states. This was in contrast to theories, such as those implied by some interpretations of antagonistic contradiction, that Communism and , the workload was nicely divided - O'Neal leading the way with 18 points in the first half, Bryant taking over with 25 in the second. As the harmony flowed, even Isaiah Rider Isaiah Rider, Jr., sometimes known as J.R. Rider (born March 12, 1971 in Oakland, California) is an American former NBA basketball player, who played from 1993–2001. The 6'5" (1. rediscovered his shooting touch, scoring 12 points in 20 minutes. As the Lakers tried to escape the tremors of their most tumultuous week in recent memory, the feeling all around was the only cure would come on the hardwood. That was the message from Jackson, from Bryant and from Magic Johnson. The rest of the Lakers spoke with their silence before tipoff. The locker room was nearly empty, O'Neal was sealed off in some other quarters and those who were around had little to say. Bryant, however, stepped forward to declare the controversy over and officially signal the beginning of what the Lakers hope is a healing, winning period. ``This is where I stand right now, and where we should stand as a team: All we want to do is go out there and beat the Cleveland Cavaliers tonight and try to win as many games as we possibly can,'' Bryant said before the game. ``All we have to do is just win. That's what it all boils down to, that's why were here... ``That's why I play this game, that's why I push myself to exhaustion every day to win, no matter who we play. You've got to beat people and dominate people and that's where we get our biggest joy, that's where I get my biggest joy, is when we beat people, not only by one point but 20 or 30 and 40 points. That's fun.'' However, there was no telling how the Lakers would respond after four days off and a week mired mire n. 1. An area of wet, soggy, muddy ground; a bog. 2. Deep slimy soil or mud. 3. A disadvantageous or difficult condition or situation: the mire of poverty. v. in their own mudbath. There was no telling what O'Neal - silent with the media and uncharacteristically quiet with his own teammates - would do, either. ``I'm real interested to see how we respond,'' Jackson said. ``We're somber, we're ready to go out and play a game.'' It was a businesslike team that took the floor, without a hint of tension or the juvenile behavior Jackson lamented a day before. O'Neal dunked for the first points of the game, Bryant scored the Lakers' next basket and some kind of order seemed to be subtly restored. By halftime, the Lakers had a 49-44 lead, and O'Neal had a very encouraging 18 points and 15 rebounds. Bryant played a reserved half, attempting just six shots and finishing with 7 points. The Lakers' lead might have been a lot larger had they figured out a way to contain ex-Clipper Lamond Murray, who scored 19 points in the first quarter. CAPTION(S): 2 photos, box Photo: (1 -- color) Lakers' center Shaquille O'Neal drives to the basket Thursday against the Cleveland Cavaliers at Staples Center. (2) Kobe Bryant, left, and Shaquille O'Neal feuded recently and reports - which were later refuted - have them both seeking trades. But they sat next to each other during a timeout Thursday. Andy Holzman/Staff Photographer Box: Game Recap |
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