Laker GM
Joined: Aug 12, 2009 Age: 23
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Location: Pasadena, CA
  
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CLEVELAND — As children growing up 12 years and a thousand miles apart, Shaquille O'Neal and LeBron James loved to mimic their favorite comic-book superheroes.
O'Neal, a child of the '70s, was coming into his own when Christopher Reeve was starring in the Superman movies. The powerful "S" insignia appealed to the maturing Shaquille, who was always bigger and stronger than any of his peers. He loved the persona and sports the logo to this day as a tattoo on his left arm.
James was in his impressionable boyhood when Michael Keaton was on the big screen outdueling Jack Nicholson in the original Batman, a super-rich hero who drove sleek, fast cars, used fancy gadgets and always outsmarted the opposition. James, who has loved Batman since his youth, currently drives a Ferrari and always owns the latest electronics - often presenting the gadgets to his teammates as gifts.
Now the two unite as teammates with the Cavaliers.
Their goals and dreams have changed since they were kids but at their core, they are the same.
O'Neal wants nothing more than to win his fifth championship ring, the cherry on a Hall of Fame career and something that would distinguish him from contemporaries Kobe Bryant and Tim Duncan, who have four titles apiece.
James badly wants his first championship, to deliver a title to his hometown and stake his claim as one of the greatest to ever play the game. He's only 24, but an NBA title is the only honor that still eludes him. A championship ring would rank top among his many awards, higher than his Olympic gold medal, his MVP award and his two All-Star Game MVPs.
Can O'Neal and James, two full-fledged superheroes in their sport, join forces to rescue the city of Cleveland, which has gone without a pro sports championship since 1964? For the first episode in the drama, tune in Tuesday night, when the Cavs host Boston (7:30 p.m., TNT) to tip off the NBA season.
Pro basketball fans from Miami to Seattle will be watching to see whether Shaq can bond with James the way he did with Dwyane Wade, which brought a championship to the Heat in June 2006.
"When I watch great games from the 1970s and '80s, you see these great teams that had two or three Hall of Famers on them," James said. "Watching the Lakers with Magic (Johnson), (James) Worthy, and Kareem (Abdul-Jabbar) or the Celtics with Larry Bird, (Kevin) McHale and (Robert) Parrish. Those were great teams and I think we have a chance to be that kind of team."
James doesn't have to look that far back. The last few NBA championship teams had the same type of rosters. Last season's Lakers had Bryant, Pau Gasol and Lamar Odom. Two years ago the Celtics had their contemporary "Big Three" with potential Hall of Famers Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen. Before that it was the Spurs with Duncan, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili.
Playing alongside Mo Williams, who was an All-Star last season, and now O'Neal, James could be right about the future of the Cavs, who also will have center Zydrunas Ilgauskas - a finesse player at 7-foot-3 - coming off the bench.
As any superhero worth his cape knows, there are always obstacles that must be overcome. Plenty of deep and talented teams over the years have been derailed by egos, contract problems and open bickering. With James, O'Neal and several other players in the final year of their contracts, there are potential pitfalls.
But James and O'Neal set the tone early. It's almost as if they're in the middle of an episode of League of Extraordinary Gentlemen.
Said James, "Having Shaq here just makes everything easier for me, I don't have to carry the whole load - from on the floor to dealing with the media to in the locker room."
Said O'Neal: "Being the father of six children, LeBron is like one of those kids who gets good grades and does everything right. He's a team player and a great guy in the locker room. So I don't have to come in and say do this and do that, my job is to just fit in. He has what it takes."
The stage is set for a compelling drama to unfold over the next eight months. Each player will put his super powers on display for all to see. Will it be enough? Will there be a happy ending for the Cavaliers? As far as O'Neal is concerned, there is only one way for this story to end.
"It is LeBron's turn," O'Neal said of the Nike spokesman whose advertising slogans include Witness. "And I'm going to be the head of witness protection."
Link: http://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/conte ... p;cxcat=46 |
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Chick Hearn will always be my favorite Laker. The Lakers are the champions, you don't have to like it, but you have to live with it.
There's no "i" in team, but there is in win.
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