lc

MIAMI - Shaquille O'Neal, in his shiny black Land Rover with the
DunkOnU vanity plate and the Superman insignia on the front grill,
wheels out of American Airlines Arena after practice late last week and
heads for South Beach, his favorite cruising haunt.

Miami's Shaquille O'Neal has Miami undefeated in NBA playoffs, but
still sounds bitter about L.A. Lakers divorce.
By Mark J. Terrill, AP

"That's my owner's boat," he says, crossing the causeway and pointing
to Miami Heat owner Micky Arison's docked yacht. (Related item: What a
big difference)

The 7-1, 321-pound star center, late of the feuding Los Angeles Lakers
and now the toast of Miami and fawning new teammates, turns onto
Washington Boulevard in South Beach and passes the Miami Beach Police
Department.

"That's where I work," he says of his moonlighting as a certified
reserve officer. Check out his badge. He says he shows up regularly as
a member of a task force working on crimes against children. "Get paid
$1 a year, and they tax it," he laughs.

He brings the Land Rover to a halt at a stoplight, and a man in a
delivery truck, noticing the S on the front grille, leaps out of the
driver's seat. O'Neal opens his tinted window and reaches out to shake
the man's hand. "You can't hide yourself," the man says. "Keep playing
good."

This is Shaq's new world. Here, 3,000 miles from Kobe Bryant and the
out-of-the-playoffs Lakers, he's king of the court - called the
"ultimate teammate" by Dwyane Wade, the budding star guard who has
embraced O'Neal.

Here he's king of South Beach and beyond. "Shaq," says Antonio
Digiacomo, a bartender, "substantiates us as a sports town."

Here he's king of the fans. "We've never had a charismatic leader like
Shaq," says Steve Mersand, a 17-year season ticketholder. "He treats
fans like royalty."

At the next light, O'Neal opens his window again and sticks his head
out to the squealing delight of two young women in a car idling next to
his Land Rover. One takes his picture with her cell phone. "You're so
awesome," the other screams.

Now he's crawling in traffic down Ocean Boulevard, the trendy main drag
on South Beach. He does this routinely, taking in the scenery. But he
never gets out. "I'm new here. When I step out, it's pictures and
people want to touch me."

His cell phone rings. It's Don DeLucca, the chief of police. "Yes sir,
chief ... OK. Thank you ... Yes sir, I feel real good. How are you
doing? ... OK. ... No problem. What time are we going to do that? ...
OK, probably like 2. Yes sir."

Here he's king of the police - and anything else he wants. "He's
taken the town by storm," says Barry Johnson of the Greater Miami
Chamber of Commerce. "It's been a lovefest."

Says O'Neal, "The Man Upstairs brought me to peace and tranquility."

On the court, O'Neal's dominating presence has brought the Heat the
best record in the East and five consecutive wins in the playoffs. They
take a 1-0 lead in their best-of-seven conference semifinal series
against the Washington Wizards into Tuesday's game.

Three rings and a divorce

The lovefest here is in stark contrast to O'Neal's maddeningly divisive
but wildly successful three-championship run with the Lakers and
Bryant, his teammate and erstwhile foil for eight seasons.

It ended in an ugly divorce 11 months ago. While Bryant was under
investigation on ***ual assault charges, the Los Angeles Times reported
an Eagle County (Colo.) detective said in a police report that Bryant
told officers O'Neal had paid up to $1 million to keep women quiet in
similar situations. O'Neal denied the allegation.

O'Neal was so eager to cut ties with his old team and town he sold his
home seven days after the trade to Miami that blew up the so-called
"Dream Team." O'Neal, Gary Payton, Karl Malone and Bryant, all future
Hall of Famers, flamed out against the Detroit Pistons in the NBA
Finals last June.

The Lakers are still smoldering. In a different way, O'Neal is
smoldering, too. Vindicated by the tell-no-lies records of his former
and current teams, he's exposing the hurt, anger and disappointment he
experienced on the other coast.

Los Angeles, the town, he says, was "real, real fake. This (Miami) is a
more real place." He refers to Lakers owner Jerry Buss as "that old
man," calls team management "cowards" and can hardly bear to mention
Bryant's name. Instead, he calls him "whatchamacallit" or "that dude"
or "the other guy" and says he was "arrogant."

O'Neal says he knew after his second year that the relationship with
Bryant would "never work out. He had people in his ear saying, 'You're
the best. It's your team.' "

At the end, their relationship had deteriorated so badly, O'Neal says,
he was worried he might physically harm Bryant. "The Man Upstairs got
me here before I blew a head vessel or before I was going to bust
somebody's head open." O'Neal says he was scared to read the newspapers
in Los Angeles most days, never sure what Bryant would say next. He
says neither management nor Buss tried to control Bryant. "It was like
they were scared of him," he adds.

O'Neal says he never backed down from Bryant's challenge to make the
Lakers his team. "I'm not doing that, especially for him. For D. Wade?
Yeah, because he's the right kind of guy to take over. But a little
arrogant (fellow) like that? Never."

The internal struggle played out like a soap opera. O'Neal says the
Lakers were the "ultimate" team on paper but adds they were "ready to
bust on the inside. The cylinders weren't going right. The turn belt
was (messed) up. One of the batteries was weak. The spark plugs were
put in backwards, and we were about to blow up anytime. ... And we
did."

O'Neal, who was starting to think about a contract extension at the
time, says Buss promised him one if he helped get Malone and Payton
aboard. "That old man told me to my face, 'You get us Karl, you get us
Gary. I love you. You will get your extension. I want you to be here.'
So, who called Karl and Gary and made them take far less money? I'm
making these guys promises, and nothing is going right, so it's me
looking bad," O'Neal says. "These guys are looking at me like, 'Damn,
why did you bring me here? How come you didn't tell me about this
dude?' "

Instead of getting an extension, O'Neal demanded a trade after Buss
decided not to re-sign coach Phil Jackson. "Once the ship started
sinking, Captain O'Neal wanted to be on a raft, going to a beautiful
Miami island," he says.

The Lakers declined to respond to O'Neal's statements, other than to
say the team offered a two-year extension two years ago that O'Neal
declined.

Now the Lakers are considering rehiring Jackson. O'Neal says he wishes
Jackson well. But asked if he sees it working for Jackson again in Los
Angeles, he says, "No, no, because the other guy (Bryant) doesn't have
anybody he respects." He has a question for the Lakers. "Who are you
going to blame now?"

It's time to gloat, but O'Neal says he doesn't have to. "I don't need
to feel vindicated. It's just a case of righteousness vs.
unrighteousness. (Buss) is not man enough to look in the mirror and say
he (messed) up."

Embraceable Shaq


taken delight in his teddy bear personality and grizzly bear game.

Thousands turned out for a confetti-strewn welcome at the arena for him
after the trade. He stepped out of a diesel truck and playfully
squirted fans with a water gun. In Coconut Grove recently, diners
spotted him and broke out in applause.

His magnetic personality has enraptured much of South Florida. Pat
Riley, the Heat president who orchestrated the trade, says, "People
trust him. His teammates trust him. The city warms to his personality
and the fact that he's a good man."

O'Neal lives just five minutes from South Beach, in an exclusive area
called Star Island. "I feel at home here," he says. He says his wife
and five kids are "loving it. She (wife Shaunie) didn't like it at
first because she's a California girl."

The locker room also appears to be the stuff of fairy tales, with
O'Neal the Heat's Cinderella in sneakers. He's had the team over for
dinners and promised to give each teammate a down payment on a sports
car if they win the title. "Everybody just feels good with him around,"
guard Eddie Jones says.

Nobody is enjoying O'Neal more than Wade, whom O'Neal nicknamed
"Flash." O'Neal met with him after the trade. "I sat him down and said,
'Listen, I'm about to tell you everything that went on between me and
Penny (Hardaway) in Orlando.' That took an hour. After that I said,
'I'm going to tell you everything that went on between me and Kobe.'
That took about two hours. I said, 'The reason I'm telling you this is
because that can never happen between you and me. We're going to play
team ball, and we're going to win.' "

Mission accomplished. Wade, who led the team in scoring in the regular
season, says, "From Day 1 he told me he was going to be the coolest
person I ever met, and he has been that."

O'Neal, 33 and in his 13th season, says he'd love to finish his career
with Miami. But it will cost the Heat. He is looking for an extension
in the offseason. "It's still business at the end of the day," he says.

Now, however, it's the business of winning another ring. Like all of
Miami, Riley is grateful for the chance O'Neal has provided. The two
ran into each other in the parking lot after practice last week, and
Riley admired O'Neal's Land Rover and noted the DunkOnU vanity plate.
"You should get one," O'Neal told him.

What would he put on his plates? "TYSHAQ," Riley said. "Thank you,
Shaq." Of course.

Big difference

Shaquille O'Neal's departure in a trade from the Los Angeles Lakers to
the Miami Heat turned out to be a big winner for the Heat. During
O'Neal's eight-year stay with Los Angeles, the Lakers went 435-189
(.697) and won three NBA titles. How the Heat have improved and the
Lakers have fallen since the trade:

2003-04 (with Shaq) Los Angeles Lakers 2004-05 (after Shaq)
56-26 Wins-losses 34-48
No. 2 seed, lost in NBA Finals Playoffs Did not qualify
98.2 Points per game 98.7
94.3 Opponents' points per game 101.7
43.1 Rebounds per game 43.2
42.4 Opponents' rebounds per game 42.4
45.4 Field goal percentage 43.7
44.0 Opponents' field goal percentage 45.3
379 Blocked shots 344
2003-04 (before Shaq) Miami Heat 2004-05 (with Shaq)
42-40 Wins-losses 59-23
No. 4 seed, lost in second round Playoffs No. 1 seed, 5-0 in playoffs

90.3 Points per game 101.5
89.7 Opponents' points per game 95
41.5 Rebounds per game 43
41.2 Opponents' rebounds per game 40.5
42.5 Field goal percentage 48.6
42.8 Opponents' field goal percentage 42.7
313 Blocked shots 474

Source: USA TODAY research

david goldberg

Shaq has no class.

--
http://clinton4.nara.gov/WH/New/html/19981216-3611.html

"Earlier today, I ordered America's Armed Forces to strike military and
security targets in Iraq ... Their mission is to attack Iraq's nuclear,
chemical, and biological programs, and its military capacity to threaten
its neighbors."

President Bill Clinton. December 16, 1998

lc

Interesting comment. I suspect your ****ysis on Shaq's character has
more to do with the Lakers having one of the worst seasons in their
history, than based on any type of reality.

LC

david goldberg

No, it has to do with the fact that Shaq has exposed himself as a whining
little boy who continues to throw insults at his former boss via the
media.

Shaq isn't the first player to be traded.

--
http://clinton4.nara.gov/WH/New/html/19981216-3611.html

"Earlier today, I ordered America's Armed Forces to strike military and
security targets in Iraq ... Their mission is to attack Iraq's nuclear,
chemical, and biological programs, and its military capacity to threaten
its neighbors."

President Bill Clinton. December 16, 1998

bozak

you gotta love that company time... i wouldnt expect anything else from
him...

which is why i say root for the laundry... what a ****ing ****head...

jeff mayner

Check out what Shaquille said about Orlando when he left and about LA when
he got here. Compare that with what he's saying now.

Shaquille has no class, IMO. And now, especially after hearing how he
treated that arrestee while he wasn't even operating in an official
capacity, he's proving he has no "class".

Geeze. All you have to do is look at his houses, cars, and everything else
he's surrounded himself with. Garish? Yes. Class? No. Jeff

lc

everything else


Actually I think both sides (Shaq and LA) got their feelings hurt when
the trade went down. Shaq, because the owner chose the young arrogant
one over him. LA (fans, media, owner, regular haters), because of how
the team tanked without him and to see him succeed without LA & Kobe
has to be a real shocker to alot of people out there. What would most
of you do if Shaq & the Heat actually win the title this year? That
would be extremely ugly/

dave zero

Pitch an 80mph fastball through my TV screen?


--
Dave Zero

"And I don't care about making an ass out of myself because most people
already realize I am one." - Dr. Kary B. Mullis

"I criticize by creation" - Cicero

"I'm not here to make people happy. I prefer to piss people off." - Liam
Gallagher

johnny

If Miami is in the finals, I am going to watch at the home
of a buddy who has been known to do such things so I can do
it too without destroying my own TV. I mean, ya gotta be a
bit practical in these things. ;-) When the Pistons won
last year and his wife tried to stop him from wrecking the
TV, he threatened to throw HER through the TV if she didn't
back off. Now that's a fan! :-)

miguel m. b.

Pot <-------> Kettle


If this ain't the most hypocritical shit.....

Shaq was scared to read the papers most days? To my recollection,
Bryant called him out in print one single time, and that was after one of
Shaq's typical "MY team" declarations, saying that Bryant should opt out.

Shaq was the one nobody bothered to control.


He's on the record. So if it does work out for PJ and the Lakers, Shaq
will be lying when he says he knew that Phil could do it.

Is it time to gloat already? I know the general consensus is that the
case is closed and Shaq has won, but what if, as the Lakers have been
saying, that trade oughtn't be judged after one season? What if Miami wins
nothing, and with the help of a good coach and another season or so of
personnel turnaround, the Lakers find themselves back on top, with a
relatively young team and a motivated floor leader in Kobe? Then what?
Will these writers be saying it's too late? Was there a game clock on
judging this trade, and did that clock run out as soon as the Lakers missed the playoffs?


I maintain that nothing matters until one of them (Shaq or Kobe) wins
another championship, and if neither one wins another championship, then
nothing matters.