SHAQ WON'T TAKE LESS FOR TEAM'S SAKE.

Byline: STEVE DILBECK

MINNEAPOLIS - He's the big man, making the big bucks, making big history.

He's just not interested in making the big sacrifice.

Not the kind that leaves less in his wallet, even if it helps assure the Lakers can surround him with quality players.

Shaquille O'Neal is not interested in signing another extension for any less than what he can be paid, which is considerably more than any other player in the NBA.

Kevin Garnett is the big man in Minnesota. He was faced with the same situation as Shaq. The last two exceptions to the current collective bargaining agreement, players who could sign for beyond the new designated individual maximum.

Garnett signed last fall for considerably less than what he could have. He'll take a $12 million pay cut next season alone and passed up a potential $83 million over the life of his five-year contract.

But he did it to leave the Timberwolves room under the salary cap to add other key players. To keep them competitive.

Shaq will have none of that, and it threatens the Lakers' future.

``I won't be devalued,'' Shaq said. ``Never, ever devalued. I will never take less than what I am worth.

``I'm the one that's bringing the players in anyway. And I can bring in players for no money. I've done that before. I've been the general manager of this team for the last two years.

``So I don't want to hear that crap about blah-blah-blah, blah-blah- blah. Because I'm the one who's bringing them in. I'm the one making the phone calls.''

Two cornerstones of their franchises will walk onto the floor tonight for Game 2 of the Western Conference finals, headed toward dramatically different personal paths.

Certainly Shaq was key to the Lakers signing Karl Malone and Gary Payton this past offseason. Both spurned millions elsewhere to sign on the cheap with the Lakers, Payton taking the $4.9 million mid-level exception and Malone the $1.5 million exception.

But the Lakers got incredibly lucky. Found two All-Star caliber players near the end of their careers who wanted to pursue an elusive championship.

It's likely a one-year phenomenon. The Lakers can't count on being able to sign significant players below market value every year. That's not a realistic business plan.

And they had to sign for much less because Shaq had taken up so much salary-cap room. He apparently has no problem with someone else signing for less than they're worth.

How much money does one man need anyway? Shaq's contract with Orlando was for $40 million. His first contract with the Lakers was for $121 million. His contract extension was for $83 million.

That's almost a quarter of a billion dollars, not even counting endorsements. Some countries survive on less.

Shaq was already screaming ``pay me'' to owner Jerry Buss at Hawaii in the preseason, and his extension had yet to kick in.

Meanwhile, Garnett signed a five-year extension for $100 million. He left the Timberwolves with options, with a promise of a bright future, with a budget not drained by a single player.

``Kevin wants to win,'' said Timberwolves coach Flip Saunders. ``He knew the flexibility with the salary-cap issue would give us the opportunity to keep us surrounding him with quality players and help put us in position to try and win a championship.

``It shows he cares about the team, cares about his teammates. It shows he has great loyalty to both the organization and the state and city. It also establishes that we're going to be here for a while at the level we're at.''

The Timberwolves are a tougher sale to free agents than the Lakers - frigid Minneapolis is a tougher sell than sunny Los Angeles. They needed him more than the Lakers need Shaq.

``I didn't need to break the bank,'' Garnett said after signing. ``Just because you have some leverage, you know? My thing, man, I want to be on a solid team and I like it here. I wanted to show Mac (general manager Kevin McHale) and the organization it's not always about dough.''

What a concept. Apparently a foreign one to Shaq.

Shaq will be making over $30 million in the final year of his contract in 2006. That's over two-thirds of the team's current $44 million salary cap.

If he opts out and leaves next summer, the most any team other than the Lakers could sign him for is $15.4 million. And he'll be 34 and nearing the end. This cries out for Shaq to be flexible, but he's having none of it.

He remains confident he can continue to draw significant players, willing to sign for less, for the privilege of playing with him.

``Of course, I can,'' Shaq said. ``Because everyone wants to play with the Diesel. I make people's game easy. You double- and triple-team me, I'll kick it out to you for a wide, easy shot. I'll add years to your career. If you don't play with me, then you have to do (stuff) on your own. It makes it much harder.

``A lot of people don't understand that. But they will if they don't make the right decision.''

The right decision for Shaq is to put aside ego, be happy with his fortune and leave the Lakers with a bright future. For reference, all he has to do tonight is look across the court.