LAKERS SHAQ-KLED - Part I

Is Shaquille O’Neal feeling too much pressure from Lakers' management to lead the "shoulda-woulda-coulda-boys to that NBA Championship's 'Promised Land'?

O’Neal proved once again that he lacks maturity, composure, poise and leadership skills. With his occasional violent outbursts, the Lakers appear to be shackled to mediocrity. With the seven-foot one-inch behemoth lacking emotional discipline, it’s a long shot that he can lead a team to the promise land of an NBA title.

The Lakers do show up during the regular season. They could go 82-0, but when it’s ready to rumble playoff time, the Hollyweird dudes exit stage left.

Prior to the Barkley incident, the towering inferno let off some steam by pounding a basketball into the chest of a Portland Trail Blazer.

As reported in the Los Angeles Times, Lakers coach Phil Jackson’s commented after the incident.

“He’s got to carry himself with a certain amount of demeanor that provides us with some insurance that we can go down the stretch and have him to count on. That’s a pretty inconsequential technical to get himself thrown out, to push a ball into a guy’s chest. But we all know what the rules are in this league and that’s part of the rule. That you don’t shove the ball in somebody’s else’s face.”

A few days later O’Neal assaulted Barkley by shoving him. The Houston Rockets forward retaliated by throwing the ball at O’Neal’s head. The incredible hulk of a body O’Neal charged little Barkley.

Then… Barkley hadda-do what he hadda-do.

Barkley embraced the young fella and put him down on the ground by pulling O’Neal’s legs out from under him. Think about it; it's like a tractor pull. With a pull like that, Barkley could have thrown his back out. It kind of reminded me of the warm embraces of a mud wrestling competition.

While on the ground, Barkley threw some solid shots and some little "noogies" to O’Neal’s head. O’Neal was flailing his arms around as well. After the two were pulled apart, they headed to their respective locker rooms "to chill" and wait for their fate from the NBA fining committee - Rod Thorn and his committee of one.

The altercation cost O’Neal $10,000 and a one-game game suspension. Barkley made a $5,000 contribution to the league. He also picked up the super gold bonus prize game suspension. Hey, Charles is getting long in the tooth and could use the rest. But hey, Back to the deal...what's up O’Neal?

Afterwards Barkley had an explanation for his part in the brawl.

“I can’t let him hit me and get away with it. My grandma would be mad at me if I let him get away with it. I had to defend myself.”

The Bark-Mans grandma would have been proud of the little fellow. The question is, why is the self proclaimed "man of steel", aka Superman, so frisky in the trenches and hitting an old man at that?

Barkley is playing in his 16th NBA season. He’s 36 years of age (37 in February) and is in his twilight years. He’s considered old by some of the young scribes that cover the league. But hey, Charles is still in charge.

Jackson has his take on O’Neal’s behavior, “”It’s a mindset,” he said. “Sometimes with these young men, they feel like their manhood is being impinged and some how or the other, they have to stand up for their better selves. But basketball is not a game of retaliation. It’s a Christian game or turning the other cheek, or so David Stern [NBA Commissioner] says.

OK, OK…Let us bow our heads and pray..but wait a minute!

O’Neal is building a history of assaults on NBA players.

Two seasons ago, O’Neal punched Utah Jazz center Greg Ostertag. Is Lennox Lewis next? Where’s Don King when you need him?

After a recent game against the Phoenix Suns, Jackson went on record as saying he’s going to defend his players. Jackson is now going along with O’Neal's picked-on theory? This is after he said O’Neal has got to "chill."

There must be something in that Lakers' water. Perhaps Jackson drank too much.

Now a statement like that brings to mind - "a good defense is a good offense;" "A squeaky wheel gets the most oil;" "Cast the doubt on others so attention won’t fall on you;" "Deflection is protection."

Suns' coach Danny Ainge said of Jackson’s comments, "Shaq dishes out more punishment than he gets." The guy is like a sixth-grader playing against second-graders. The last thing he needs is protection. Phils doing that. He protected Michael (Jordan). That’s his job as a coach.”

Well now, listen up! It’s more like O’Neal is a whale swimming with minnows. Everyone in the NBA bounces off of him. The dude is HUGE. OK, OK. He’s like an aircraft carrier amongst PT boats. How many people can say they knocked O’Neal down? If you don’t think 315 pounds on a seven feet one inch body is HUGE then… I stand corrected.

Feeling the way he does about his all-star center, why doesn’t Jackson take advantage of the new NBA's "no touch the guard rules" and make O’Neal a guard? That way nobody would be allowed to touch him. He would be like a bull in the china closet. It would pull the defense inside out! [Don’t worry Phil…I’ll send you a bill.]

O’Neal’s feeling as though he’s being picked on, is nothing new for the big fellow. He left LSU early because he felt they were picking on his giant body at the college level. There were times he was double and triple teamed. Soooo…

He left after his junior season thinking he would have a better fate in the pros. NOT… SO… What he did find was bigger guys wanting to give him BIGGER love hugs and bumps. And he doesn’t like it.

After last season's game-one playoff loss to the San Antonio Spurs in a fit of anger, O’Neal smashed a television to "smithereens" in the Lakers' locker-room.

It’s one thing to punch another seven-footer like Ostertag, but why would O’Neal pick on little biddy guy like Barkley and a television that couldn’t defend itself. Barkley is listed as 6’6” and 252 pounds. Yes, he's got some chunk but SO WHAT!!!! He’s a little guy! He’ll never see 6’6” unless he wears high heels. He’s more like 6’4”.

To sum it up, is O’Neal feeling too much pressure from Lakers' management to lead the "shoulda-woulda-coulda-boys to that NBA Championship ‘Promise Land?

Stay tuned for part II of the O'Neal pressure cooker, coming soon.

BOXING Undefeated Diego Morales [19-0, 15 KO’s] will defend his 115-pound Bantamweight title against Adonis Rivas [13-1-1]. The fight will take place Saturday night November 20, at the Hard Rock Hotel Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Morales, 19, is the younger brother of super-bantamweight title-holder Erik "El Terrible" Morales.

On the same bill, Juan Manuel Marquez,, 29-2 will face Remigio Molina, 35-3-1. Marquez is coming off losing a disputed decision to WBA champion Freddie Norwood.

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WBA champion Nestor Garza 36-1, 28 KO’s will take on Kozo Ishi, 21-1, 14 KO’s in Nagova Japan, Sunday November 21.

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