On Shaq

[AU_Tiger_2000]

I used to hate Shaq.  I thought everything had been handed to him too early.  I thought that Alonzo Mourning (pick #2) and Christian Laetner (pick #3) would turn out to be better pros than the no shooting showboating Shaq.    Plus he threatened to upset the balance of power in the NBA away from my beloved Bulls.

Then I watched him play some games.  About midway through his 2nd season I started really paying attention to him.  He had the physical size and presence of Wilt Chamberlain, the feet of Akeem Olajuwon, and the personality of Magic Johnson.  I loved him.  He had the ability of Charles Barkley to say whatever he wanted but not piss everyone off.  He could trash talk like Bird and Jordan but he shared his trash talk through the media.  He called the Spurs a "good WNBA team", the Kings the "Sacramento Queens", and Chris Bosh "RuPaul".  He was one of the most entertaining athletes that I ever saw.

I heard Rick Reilly on the radio yesterday to sum up Shaq.  Rick said that when the NBA Jam arcade game came out including him Shaq had one delivered.  When it showed up at his door Reilly happened to be there, Shaq started jumping up and down like a little kid yelling, "I get to be me!"  You know if someone made a video game with you in it you would totally do this.

He gave himself nicknames that were way better than the ones that anybody else could come up with.  Shaqtus when he played in Arizona, genius.

He made a ton of money, but gave a lot away.  He loved and supported police officers in a time that the black community looked down on policemen as tools of oppression.  (Shaq played from 1992-2011, Rodney King was beaten in '91 and the riots took place in '92.  "Cop Killer" was released in '92).  Towards the end of his career he was famously made a deputy in Miami.  Prior to that he bought a new police car for LAPD after one was destroyed during the Lakers victory celebration.

He has his MBA and is pursuing his PhD. 

Shaq joins the list of guys that I didn't always root for on the court but that I loved to watch on TV.  Guys like Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, Tim Hardaway, Dominque Wilkins, and Reggie Miller.  But other than Charles and Reggie, Shaq's best moments were likely to come after the game.

[Saniflush]

Fuck him.

[AUJarhead]

I had a buddy of mine from the Marines, who was 6'7", and went to LSU.  Said he was crossing the street on campus one morning, and Shaq was going the opposite way.  As they passed, Shaq looked at him and said, "What's up, little man?"  Said that was the only time he'd ever been called "little."

I remember the first year or two Shaq was in the league, he would go back to LSU to complete his degree.  It was always a big deal, the local news would be back.  On the first day of class one semester, the local crew caught him walking out of class.  "Shaq, anything to say?"  "Yeah, look mom, I didn't skip class today."

I've always liked the guy, I can't count how many times I saw him play basketball at LSU (My parents have been season ticket holders for basketball for almost 40 years).  I'll miss him, I hope TNT hires him to work with Barkley and Kenny Smith.

[Snaggletiger]

I'm the same way as 2000.  Didn't always pull for the teams he was on but damn, he was as entertaining on and off the court as anyone who ever played the game.  This...is one of the reasons I loved Shaq

[Townhallsavoy]

Shaq linked to street gang's beating of a guy who claimed he had a sex tape of Shaq.

LOS ANGELES -- Members of a Los Angeles street gang are facing charges in the 2008 beating of a man who claimed he had a sex tape of Shaquille O'Neal and that the retired NBA star was behind the attack.

Sheriff's department records reviewed by the Los Angeles Times showed investigators probed allegations that O'Neal was connected to the attack, but O'Neal denied any involvement and has not been charged, the newspaper reported Wednesday. Also, O'Neal is not named in the criminal complaint.

Robert Ross reported being beaten in 2008 but details of the case only came to light publicly this week in a preliminary hearing in which Ross testified against seven members of the Main Street Crips facing kidnapping, robbery and assault charges.

According to the sheriff's report, Ross told investigators he was kidnapped at gunpoint by Main Street Crips gang members in West Hollywood in February 2008 and taken to the home of the gang's alleged leader, Ladell Rowles. He said the gang members beat him, stole $15,000 in cash and some jewelry.

Ross said Rowles demanded the purported videotape of O'Neal having sex with a woman other than his wife and $100,000, according to the sheriff's investigative report.

Ross told investigators in 2008 that he believed O'Neal was behind the attack because of a business deal gone bad and because O'Neal believed he had the tape, the Times reported. Ross later told police he was "bluffing" about the tape.

Detectives found phone records showing a "flurry of calls" between Rowles and O'Neal's business partner Mark Stevens around the time of the February 2008 incident, the sheriff's report said.

O'Neal and Stevens both denied any involvement in the attack when interviewed by sheriff's investigators in 2008, the Times said.

Prosecutors said they have no evidence that a sex tape exists.

In a July 2009 letter asking for leniency in Ross' sentencing for unrelated federal drug and firearm charges, a sheriff's captain wrote that Ross was cooperating with law enforcement as a victim and witness in an incident that may implicate a "celebrity," the Times reported.

Attorney Nicholas Tonsich, who represented O'Neal and Stevens, did not immediately respond to an Associated Press call for comment.

O'Neal retired this month after 19 seasons, eight of them with the Los Angeles Lakers.

Ross is expected to resume his testimony when the preliminary hearing continues in July.


Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press

http://sports.espn.go.com/los-angeles/nba/news/story?id=6667362

[Snaggletiger]

Shaq had to have someone choke a bitch