BACK FOR THIRDS SHAQ'S TIME TO MAKE IT ALL FINAL.Byline: Howard Beck Staff Writer EL SEGUNDO El Segundo (ĕl sēgŭn`dō), industrial city (1990 pop. 15,223), Los Angeles co., S Calif., on Santa Monica Bay; inc. 1917. Its products include navigation and computer systems, aircraft parts, office machines, telephone apparatus, and - The microphones are all set for the onslaught. Pens are poised. Tape recorders rolling. And on the court, another challenger, waiting to get decked. It's June, and so 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). is talking again, playing again, flexing his muscles and his mouth on the international stage of the NBA Finals The NBA Finals is the championship series of the National Basketball Association. The team winning the Eastern Conference Finals earns one of the two berths in the championship round, with the other going to the team that wins the Western Conference Finals. . It's an annual ritual now. But it's not the same. Not yet, anyway. O'Neal is here. But Superman, the alter ego A doctrine used by the courts to ignore the corporate status of a group of stockholders, officers, and directors of a corporation in reference to their limited liability so that they may be held personally liable for their actions when they have acted fraudulently or unjustly or when , is MIA MIA n. A member of the armed services who is reported missing following a combat mission and whose status as to injury, capture, or death is unknown. [m(issing) i(n) a(ction). , perhaps stuck in a phone booth too small for his ever-expanding frame. The Lakers, seeking to become the first pro team in Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. history, in any sport, to win three consecutive championships, open the Finals tonight 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. at 6 p.m. The New Jersey Nets will also be participating. And O'Neal? He'll be dominating, probably. Entertaining, maybe. Nothing is certain in this pain-filled, grimacing run through the playoffs. In the last two Finals, O'Neal has been at his best, both on and off the court. He ran over the Indiana Pacers “Pacers” redirects here. For other uses, see Pacers (disambiguation). The Indiana Pacers are a professional basketball team that plays in the National Basketball Association (NBA). in 2000, the Philadelphia 76ers in 2001, earning Finals MVP (Multimedia Video Processor) A high-speed DSP chip from Texas Instruments, introduced in 1994. Officially introduced as the TMS320C80, it combines RISC technology with the functionality of four DSPs on one chip. each time. Between games, he was the life of the party, yukking it up at the daily media sessions with an unpredictable string of one-liners and off-the-wall references that filled up newspapers and ESPN's nightly wrap-up. In Philly, he challenged Dikembe Mutombo In Indiana, a reporter wondered why O'Neal speaks in low monotones, and O'Neal spent a hilarious 30 seconds overenunciating and overprojecting, cracking up himself, and everyone else. And now? Now, the arthritic big toe big toe n. The largest and innermost toe of the human foot. and the sore ankle and the bad wrist have sapped some of O'Neal's production, and much of his good humor Noun 1. good humor - a cheerful and agreeable mood amiability, good humour, good temper humour, mood, temper, humor - a characteristic (habitual or relatively temporary) state of feeling; "whether he praised or cursed me depended on his temper at the time"; . He's battled injuries, criticism and his coach in the last month. This, however, is the Finals. O'Neal owns this time. Lives for it. The domination on the court and the attention off it. ``It's just the spotlight,'' said Brian Shaw Brian K. Shaw (born March 22, 1966 in Oakland, California) is a former professional basketball player. The 6' 6" Shaw could play both guard spots, but was used primarily at point guard over the course of his 14 seasons in the league. , O'Neal's teammate and close friend. ``He likes being in the spotlight, regardless of what it is. I don't know Don't know (DK, DKed) "Don't know the trade." A Street expression used whenever one party lacks knowledge of a trade or receives conflicting instructions from the other party. if it will be the same this year, because he's been in a different mood. But on the court, we expect him to be dominant and be his normal self in terms of the energy that he brings to the court.'' There were hints of the old O'Neal in the Western Conference finals, as the Lakers battled for seven taut games with the Sacramento Kings. O'Neal, who averaged 23 points in the first two rounds, found his touch, averaging 30 points against the Kings. He dunked hard. He rebounded with aggression (13 per game). He played with an energy, a ferocity, seen only in glimpses this season. ``I think he senses another opportunity to put a notch in his belt and build his legacy,'' said Rick Fox. ``I know he always seems to have quite the nonchalant non·cha·lant adj. Seeming to be coolly unconcerned or indifferent. See Synonyms at cool. [French, from Old French, present participle of nonchaloir, to be unconcerned : non-, attitude when it comes to his legacy in basketball, and whether or not he cares to be the greatest ever. But I think another championship will strengthen that argument. ``I think the closer he gets to that, and the more he recognizes that, the bigger he lets his play show that he's worthy of that.'' In thoughtful moments, O'Neal talks about wanting to be remembered among the greatest centers of all time, with Wilt Chamberlain Wilton Norman "Wilt" Chamberlain (August 21, 1936–October 12, 1999), nicknamed Wilt the Stilt and The Big Dipper, was an American professional National Basketball Association (NBA) basketball player for the Philadelphia / San Francisco Warriors, the and Bill Russell Noun 1. Bill Russell - United States basketball center (born in 1934) William Felton Russell, Russell and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar For the football player, see . Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (born Ferdinand Lewis Alcindor, Jr. on April 16, 1947) is a retired American professional basketball player and current assistant coach. . Appropriately, this year 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. gave O'Neal a new nickname, with a hip-hop flavor: Wilt Chamberneezy. O'Neal loved it so much, he put the name on a baseball cap. He has said he wants to see his number hanging in the Staples rafters, next to West and Magic and Worthy. A three-peat, a feat accomplished only by the 1990s Chicago Bulls, the 1960s Boston Celtics and the 1950s Minneapolis Lakers, would certainly cement O'Neal's legacy. He knows it. And, maybe, he's playing for it. The first championship left O'Neal in tears, knowing he had finally expunged all the playoff heartaches and sweeps and finally proven his critics wrong. The second championship was a celebration and an affirmation. And a third? ``I haven't really thought about it,'' O'Neal said Tuesday. ``I don't like to think too far ahead. It's the first team to win four games and we have the experience, we know what it takes. We realize it's not going to be easy.'' Nothing has been this season. O'Neal missed 12 games because of injuries, three because of a suspension for fighting. And the Lakers struggled to win 58 games, denying themselves the West's best record and forcing them to win a Game 7 on the road to clinch the conference finals. ``I think he even has more to prove,'' said Shaw. ``The fact that this year we had to really labor to get to this point.'' In short bursts, the Lakers are seeing glimpses of the old off-the-court O'Neal, too. On the bus ride out of Arco Arena on Sunday, he dropped his drawers, to the horror of Kings fans and the delight of his teammates. ``He was the world's biggest stripper Stripper Slang for an individual homeowner who strips the equity out of his or her home through mortgage refinancing. Proceeds are generally not re-invested, but spent on consumer goods. Notes: Most people get rich by saving and investing wisely. on the bus the other day as we went by some of the fans,'' Fox said with a laugh. ``He was quite ecstatic about our success. It was fun. He enjoys this time. He relaxes into it and has fun with it. And when he's at his best is when he's most relaxed and having fun.'' There has been little of that lately, as O'Neal has grown frustrated by unsympathetic officiating and irritated that reporters don't support his position. At Tuesday's news conference, the first of the Finals, O'Neal was mostly serious, showing none of his creative wit. His lightest moment came when comedian Arsenio Hall presented him with a steel-toed, size-22 basketball shoe to protect his toe. ``That's nice. You're a funny dude,'' O'Neal said with a laugh. The Lakers generally go as Shaq goes. So they look forward to more nights like they saw Sunday in Sacramento, and more days like they saw last year in Philadelphia, when O'Neal declared himself ``quotacious.'' ``Shaq is a showman,'' Fox said. ``This is the world's stage right now in sports. ... He has all the world as his stage. And he's a big player when that happens. ``I think just the energy of the moment and the atmosphere, the situation, lifts not only him, but it lifts all of us. If you can infuse in·fuse v. 1. To steep or soak without boiling in order to extract soluble elements or active principles. 2. To introduce a solution into the body through a vein for therapeutic purposes. him with some energy and excitement, like he's got in the last two games, then he plays to that level, which is the Superman level we like to see.'' NEW JERSEY at LAKERS What: NBA Finals, Game 1 When: Today, 6 p.m. TV/Radio: Ch. 4; 570-AM. HOW THE LAKERS GOT HERE First Round LAKERS 3, PORTLAND 0 The Lakers go into the playoffs in the unfamiliar role as the third seed in the Western Conference, but they draw a familiar foe in the Portland Trail Blazers The Portland Trail Blazers are a professional basketball team based in Portland, Oregon. They play in the National Basketball Association (NBA). The franchise, based in Portland throughout its existence, entered the league in 1970 and has won the NBA Championship once, in 1977. . For the second consecutive year, the two teams meet in the first round, and for the second year in a row the result was a Lakers sweep. This one wasn't quite as easy as last year's, mostly because the Lakers seemed only mildly interested. Things got a little dicey in Game 3 in Portland when the Trail Blazers took a five-point lead with 39 seconds left. But after a 3-pointer by Kobe Bryant cut it to one, Scottie Pippen made just 1 of 2 free throws to make it 91-89. That set up Robert Horry's clutch 3-point shot on a dish from Bryant with 2.1 seconds left to give the Lakers a 92-91 victory and the series sweep. Second Round LAKERS 4, SPURS 1 News alert: The Lakers actually lose a Western Conference playoff game. After sweeping into the Finals last year by winning 11 in a row, the Lakers fall to the Spurs in Game 2 to hand home-court advantage to San Antonio. Not that the Spurs do anything with it, thanks to the brilliance of Bryant in the fourth quarters of Games 3 and 4, when he brought the Lakers back from deficits to carry them to victories. Bryant, who had 46 combined points in the fourth period against the Spurs, was at his best in Game 4, when he made a terrific rebound follow shot with 5.1 seconds left to give the Lakers an 87-85 victory. In the last three minutes, he hit two critical 3-pointers in addition to the game-winner. The Lakers closed out the Spurs in Game 5 when Bryant again had another big fourth quarter, this time scoring 10 points down the stretch to put the Lakers in the Western Conference finals. Western Conference finals LAKERS 4, KINGS 3 In one of the most thrilling conference finals ever, the Lakers barely survived the fast-charging Kings, overcoming a 3-2 series deficit to win the last two games, including Game 7 at Arco Arena, where the Kings lost only five times during the regular season. The Lakers prevailed in Games 6 and 7 behind two monster efforts from Shaquille O'Neal, who broke loose for 41 points and 17 rebounds in Game 6, then 35 points in Game 7. But they never would have even reached a final game had Robert Horry, the hero in the deciding game against Portland, not made an incredible 3-pointer in Game 4 at the buzzer to give the Lakers a 100-99 victory after they trailed by as many as 24 points. The Lakers' poise and experience were the keys against the Kings, and that was never more apparent than Game 7, when the Lakers came back from a nine-point margin in the third quarter and outscored the Kings 12-6 in overtime. - Vincent Bonsignore CAPTION(S): 4 photos, drawing, box Photo: (1) Shaquille O'Neal has had a somewhat difficult season, but he figures to be at his best starting tonight when the Lakers begin their quest for a third NBA NBA abbr. 1. National Basketball Association 2. National Boxing Association NBA (US) n abbr (= National Basketball Association) → Basketball-Dachverband (= championship. David Sprague/Staff Photographer (2 -- 4) no caption (Lakers action photos) Drawing: (color) LAKERS Defending Champions Box: HOW THE LAKERS GOT HERE (see text) |
|
||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion