LAKERS NOTEBOOK: O'NEAL SHOWING OLD DOMINANCE.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 - 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 flashing his dominant side again, though not often enough for the Lakers to build a winning streak Noun 1. winning streak - a streak of wins streak, run - an unbroken series of events; "had a streak of bad luck"; "Nicklaus had a run of birdies" and not consistently enough to offset some still-shaky play from his supporting cast. And the prevailing view from the Lakers' antsy ant·sy adj. ant·si·er, ant·si·est Slang 1. Restless or impatient; fidgety: The long wait made the children antsy. 2. front office remains wait-and-see. The Lakers came away from Sunday night's victory over Phoenix with a renewed sense of confidence, inspired by O'Neal's energetic 36-point, 16-rebound, four-block effort. They have won three of their past four games and four of the past six and for the first time appear to have a true sense of momentum. Samaki Walker Samaki Ijuma Walker (born February 25 1976 in Columbus, Ohio) is an American professional basketball player currently signed with the Milwaukee Bucks of the NBA. [1] and Rick Fox are playing better, rookie Kareem Rush Kareem Lamar Rush (born October 30, 1980 in Kansas City, Missouri) is an American professional basketball player positioned at shooting guard currently under contract with the Indiana Pacers. is making a contribution and 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. is still Kobe Bryant. It's all been encouraging, but management is not yet ready to declare the crisis over, or stop looking for Looking for In the context of general equities, this describing a buy interest in which a dealer is asked to offer stock, often involving a capital commitment. Antithesis of in touch with. outside help. ``We will not be deterred,'' 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. said, ``just because we won a couple games.'' The trade deadline is six weeks away, giving the Lakers (14-20) ample time to prove they don't need outside assistance. But Jackson has lately pointed to a lack of consistent energy from his older veterans (Brian Shaw, Robert Horry, Rick Fox) and, desperate for athleticism on the floor, is trying to wring production out of Devean George, Samaki Walker and Rush. ``I've always said that if we can help ourselves, we'll help ourselves,'' Jackson said. ``And we feel like we need to be a little more athletic as a basketball club. I think the guys that have won championships for us in the last three years need some help to get us to a point in the game where they can do the effective things to help us win.'' As Jackson noted, the Lakers beat the Suns by only 12 points - despite getting O'Neal's best game of the season. General manager Mitch Kupchak would not rule out a free-agent signing or a trade, although there aren't any impact players in the pool of unsigned veterans. Ironically, after bemoaning the inadequacy of his supporting cast, O'Neal might be the one to save their jobs. His elevated level of play Sunday noticeably energized his teammates, who responded in kind. If they continue to play that way, the victories will start to come in bunches, Kupchak said. ``The way he played (Sunday) night is the way we have become accustomed to him playing,'' Kupchak said. ``Although he has been putting up numbers before that, (Sunday) he was so much more active - blocking shots, taking baskets to the rim, getting rebounds, in-traffic rebounds. ... ``And to me, that was probably the most encouraging thing about our win (Sunday) night.'' --Also: Statistical oddity of the season: The Lakers are 13-6 in games played Friday through Sunday, but 1-14 from Monday through Thursday. ... Bryant has scored at least 30 points in five of the past seven games and is averaging 31.7 points (on .446 shooting), 7.6 assists and 7.9 rebounds during that span. CAPTION(S): box Box: LAKERS vs. SEATTLE - Howard Beck |
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