Okay, so I'm a fool and I forgot to post sp6r's info before. Posting it now, and including his vote. If this changes someone's opinion, just let me know - I'll certainly extend the deadline since I screwed this up.
NY TIMES NBA PreviewThe race for the Eastern Conference title is wide open, but whoever wins will be a decided underdog to the Western Conference champion because that's where the league's power lies, from the defending champion Spurs to the new-age Lakers and the old-money Jazz. Here's a look at each of the 29 teams, listed in their predicted order of finish.
Eastern Conference
ATLANTIC DIVISION
Miami Heat
Last season 33-17, first in division
Additions F Otis Thorpe, G Anthony Carter
Loss G Terry Porter,
The rule changes in defense and a preseason injury to Otis Thorpe will hurt the Heat early on. Losing Terry Porter to San Antonio makes matters worse. But Miami still works and plays harder than any other team in the league. After undergoing knee surgery in the off season, Tim Hardaway hired Michael Jordan's former personal trainer. He is in the final year of his contract and is determined to prove he is one of the elite point guards. "I feel this is our year," Alonzo Mourning said. "We're not old; we're experienced." After two straight first-round playoff exits, Miami is graying, but still proud and poised enough to make one last run.
NEW YORK KNICKS
Last season 27-23, fourth
Additions F John Wallace, F Mirsad Turkcan, C Andrew Lang
Loss C Herb Williams
They have all the components for a title, except the one that kept them from knocking off San Antonio last June: a center they can count on. For all the bluster about a lineup featuring Latrell Sprewell, Allan Houston and Marcus Camby, Patrick Ewing needs to return to health before the Knicks can entertain championship thoughts. His role will be reduced, but his presence is paramount if the Knicks plan to return to the finals in an 82-game season.
PHILADELPHIA 76ERS
Last season 28-22, third
Additions F Billy Owens, G Bruce Bowen, F Jumaine Jones, C Todd MacCulloch, C Stanley Roberts
Loss F Harvey Grant
The shortest player to win the scoring title, the 6-foot Allen Iverson (26.8 ppg) will again vie with Jason Williams, Kobe Bryant and Stephon Marbury for the highlights-at-11 award. Larry Hughes is almost as electrifying, leaving Larry Brown a few questions to answer: Who runs the point fulltime, and can two improvisational players not only sell tickets but also help the 76ers win consistently?
NEW JERSEY NETS
Last season 16-34, seventh
Additions C Evan Eschmeyer, F Johnny Newman, C Michael Cage, G Sherman Douglas
Losses C Rony Seikaly, G Eric Murdock
His rehabilitation on his broken kneecap is progressing, but Jayson Williams may not play until January. That leaves Stephon Marbury and Keith Van Horn to backpack the Nets for the first two months of the season. Kerry Kittles will play some point guard along with Sherman Douglas. They won't start 3-17, like last season, but with a shoddy defense and no one to stop the opposing center, making the playoffs is going to be a chore.
BOSTON CELTICS
Last season 19-31, fifth
Additions F Calbert Cheaney, F Danny Fortson, F Eric Williams, G Eric Washington
Losses G-F Ron Mercer, F Popeye Jones
All of Boston nearly turned on Rick Pitino last season as the team he coached and assembled faltered badly. To find allies, Pitino went on an archeological dig. He invited Bill Russell to spend a week with the troops to talk about "team agenda" and "team ego." If Antoine Walker and Kenny Anderson take the advice to heart, the Celtics have the talent to make a playoff push. If not, the next change at the Fleet Center may involve Pitino.
WASHINGTON WIZARDS
Last season 18-32, sixth
Additions G Richard Hamilton, C Ike Austin, F Aaron Williams, F Michael Smith
Losses F Calbert Cheaney, C Ben Wallace
Once you get past the backcourt of Rod Strickland and Mitch Richmond and figure out how to contain Juwan Howard, the Wizards are lean. A lot of their success will depend on Ike Austin and whether he returns to the player he was in Miami. UConn's Richard Hamilton will help. And picking up Michael Smith off waivers was a real coup for General Manager Wes Unseld. But if lingering chemistry problems aren't solved, the lottery awaits.
ORLANDO MAGIC
Last season 33-17, second
Additions F Pat Garrity, F Monty Williams, G Tariq Abdul-Wahad, G Anthony Parker, F Corey Maggette, F Chris Gatling, F Armen Gilliam, F Terry Davis, C Ben Wallace
Losses G Penny Hardaway, G Nick Anderson, F Horace Grant, C Ike Austin
Orlando's off season was more about demolition than refurbishment. The Magic was a part of 24 transactions involving 32 players. And that's not even counting Doc Rivers's exchanging his gig as a TNT analyst for a job that Chuck Daly didn't want. Darrell Armstrong will run the Magic in Penny Hardaway's absence. General Manager John Gabriel has decided to stockpile salary cap room for the free-agent blitz next summer.
CENTRAL DIVISION
Indiana Pacers
Last season 33-17, first in division
Additions F Jonathan Bender, F-C Jeff Foster, C Zan Tabak
Loss F Antonio Davis
Chris Mullin is going to the bench to make room for Jalen Rose in the starting lineup. Reggie Miller and Mark Jackson are talking less. Like Coach Larry Bird, who has said this will be his last season, they know the end of Indiana's annual post-season march is near. Jonathan Bender is supposed to be the next Kevin Garnett. But giving up the experience and toughness of Antonio Davis could hurt in the short term. With six free agents next season, the Pacers are about to make their last stand in the new Conseco Fieldhouse.
Charlotte Hornets
Last season 26-24, fifth
Additions F Todd Fuller, G Baron Davis
Losses F Chucky Brown, F Chuck Person
As Bernie Bickerstaff once said of a disappointing Wizards team, "Talent isn't everything." Paul Silas has his work cut out for him. Yet if the Hornets' new coach can persuade Derrick Coleman to keep his weight down, stay away from trouble and contribute as a sixth man; if he can keep Anthony Mason and Eddie Jones from whining; if he can ease Baron Davis into the rotation without hurting David Wesley's feelings, then the Hornets have the makings of a conference finalist.
Toronto Raptors
Last season 23-27, sixth
Additions C Antonio Davis, G Dell Curry, G Muggsy Bogues, C Alek Radojevic
Losses none
Vince Carter and Tracy McGrady will be playing H-O-R-S-E above the rim, Antonio Davis and Charles Oakley will take care of the grunt work inside. The Raptors have a nice blend of old and new, gruff and fluff; the big question is at point guard, where Doug Christie takes over for Alvin Williams. If Muggsy Bogues is any help, a Canadian team will join the N.B.A. post-season for the first time.
Atlanta Hawks
Last season 31-19, second
Additions G Isaiah Rider, G Bimbo Coles, G Jason Terry, G Jim Jackson, C Lorenzen Wright
Losses G Steve Smith, G Mookie Blaylock
Only six players are back after Atlanta General Manager Pete Babcock cleaned house. That's what a second-round sweep against the athletic Knicks will do. The Hawks traded character for talent when they acquired Isaiah Rider. The acquisition of Lorenzen Wright may be their most important off-season deal, given that Dikembe Mutombo needed help in the post. It's a huge gamble, busting up the old guard for Gen-X blood. But then, the formula worked for the Knicks last season.
Milwaukee Bucks
Last season 28-22, fourth
Additions F Danny Manning, G-F Dale Ellis, F J.R. Reid
Losses G Michael Curry, G Dell Curry, F Armen Gilliam, F Chris Gatling
Sam Cassell still shoots first and passes later, often leaving crumbs to Ray Allen and Glenn Robinson. With no bona fide power forward, George Karl's trapping, pressing defensive schemes will be that much more important to Milwaukee's success. The Bucks need a warrior inside, and J.R. Reid is not that player. First round and out. Again.
Detroit Pistons
Last season 29-21, third
Additions F-C Terry Mills, G Pooh Richardson, G Michael Curry
Loss C Bison Dele
Grant Hill has done all he can; it's up to his teammates to keep the All-Star forward from opting out of his contract after the season. They're not off to a good start with the retirement of the enigmatic center Bison Dele (formerly Brian Williams).
Cleveland Cavaliers
Last season 22-28, seventh
Additions G Andre Miller, G Trajan Langdon, G-F Lamond Murray, F Mark Bryant
Losses G Derek Anderson, G-F Johnny Newman, F Corie Blount
If Shawn Kemp is consistent -- and Zydrunas Ilgauskas can get healthy -- the Cavaliers have potential. Drafting point guard Andre Miller and shooting guard Trajan Langdon provides depth and competition for Brevin Knight and Wesley Person. When it comes to talent, Randy Wittman has more than a lot of first-year coaches have to work with.
Chicago Bulls
Last season 13-37, eighth
Additions F Elton Brand, F Ron Artest, F-C Lari Ketner, F David Ruffin, G B.J. Armstrong, C Will Perdue, G Hersey Hawkins, G James Cotton, G Fred Hoiberg
Losses G Ron Harper
Like Orlando, the Bulls are saving their pennies for a summer shopping spree. Until he can bid for a free agent like Tim Duncan or Grant Hill, General Manager Jerry Krause will settle for watching Elton Brand develop.
Western Conference
MIDWEST DIVISION
San Antonio Spurs
Last season 37-13, tied for first in division
Additions G Terry Porter, F Samaki Walker, C Felton Spencer, F Chucky Brown
Loss C Will Perdue
If a referendum to build a new arena is shot down Tuesday, Tim Duncan may take his talents elsewhere next season and the Spurs will be just another small-market team to lose an emerging supernova. The Spurs play for each other like no team in the league and now they carry the swagger of a champion instead of the nice-guy label. There are negatives: the average age of David Robinson, Mario Elie and Avery Johnson will be 35 at season's end and it is unclear whether Sean Elliott will play again after undergoing a kidney transplant on Aug. 16. Still, the Spurs are good enough to make one more run at the finals.
Utah Jazz
Last season 37-13, tied for first
Additions C Olden Polynice, F Quincy Lewis, F Scott Padgett
Losses F Shandon Anderson, C Greg Foster
Karl Malone, John Stockton and Jeff Hornacek have cleared the cobwebs and committed themselves to putting the children in their place again. But losing Shandon Anderson to Houston severely hurt the Jazz's athleticism. Acquiring Olden Polynice was a stopgap. How Utah plans to overcome the West's young stars is a mystery only Jerry Sloan's stubbornness can solve. Bryon Russell has to have a monster season if the Jazz entertains any ideas of returning to the finals.
Minnesota Timberwolves
Last season 25-25, fourth
Additions F Wally Szczerbiak, G William Avery
Loss F Dennis Scott
If Tim Duncan is the best player in the league, Kevin Garnett is right behind. Joe Smith and Terrell Brandon re-signed and stayed with the Timberwolves, a distinct change from the disappearing act Stephon Marbury and Tom Gugliotta played last season. William Avery, the fourth player drafted out of Duke in the first round, will give Brandon an occasional rest. It won't be Wally's World, but if Szczerbiak can knock down jump shots routinely, the Timberwolves can win a playoff series and take the next step.
Houston Rockets
Last season 31-19, third
Additions F Tony Massenburg, G Steve Francis, F Don MacLean, F-G Shandon Anderson, F Walt Williams, F Kelvin Cato, F Carlos Rogers, F Kenny Thomas
Losses F Scottie Pippen, G Brent Price, F Othella Harrington, F Antoine Carr, F Eddie Johnson
Charles Barkley is no closer to being fitted for that elusive championship ring in what he says is his final season. At age 36, he and Hakeem Olajuwon are nearly relics. The dynamic Dream Shake has given way to a pondering pump fake. Steve Francis will be eye candy at point guard, and Shandon Anderson will blend in nicely. But Houston has no depth and no shot at getting out of the second round.
Denver Nuggets
Last season 14-36, sixth
Additions G-F Ron Mercer, F Popeye Jones, G George McCloud, F James Posey, G Chris Herren
Loss F Danny Fortson
Nick Van Exel, Chauncey Billups and Ron Mercer make up a frightening defensive matchup on the perimeter. Raef LaFrentz comes back from a knee injury healthy and determined. Antonio McDyess, who finished in the top 10 in scoring, rebounding and blocked shots last season, will continue his ascension. The Nuggets will be a fun, high-octane diversion. But a corn-silk thin bench leaves them out of the playoffs again.
Vancouver Grizzlies
Last season 8-42 seventh
Additions G Brent Price, G Michael Dickerson, F Othella Harrington, F Antoine Carr, F Dennis Scott, F Grant Long, F Obinna Ekezie
Losses F Tony Massenburg, G Rodrick Rhodes, F Michael Smith, G Steve Francis
Shareef Addur-Rahim can't be stopped offensively and Bryant Reeves shed nearly 40 pounds in the off season. The Steve Francis fiasco, in which the Grizzlies' No. 2 pick in the draft forced the largest player transaction in league history over the summer, resulted in depth and maturity. But the sale of the team to the St. Louis Blues owner/billionaire, Peter Laurie, has left Vancouver fans wondering if their team is going to be around in two seasons when the talent should begin to gel.
Dallas Mavericks
Last season 19-31, fifth
Additions F-C Sean Rooks, F Leon Smith
Losses F Samaki Walker, F A.C. Green
When asked to run sprints earlier this summer, the rookie Leon Smith replied to Assistant Coach Donn Nelson: "Leon Smith doesn't want to run sprints. Leon Smith is tired. You run them." When the veteran Gary Trent was signed to a contract extension, he failed to show for his own news conference. If Coach and G.M. Don Nelson, father of Donn, thought he had problems in New York . . .
PACIFIC DIVISION
Los Angeles Lakers
Last season 31-19, second in division
Additions F A.C. Green, G Melvin Levett, G Ron Harper, John Salley
Losses F-C Sean Rooks, F J.R. Reid
As if grasping the triangle offense is not enough, the Lakers will have to deal with Kobe Bryant's being out for perhaps a month with a broken hand. Shaquille O'Neal has bulked up to 340 pounds and says he is honored to play for Phil Jackson. But getting this bunch to play together will be a large task, especially when players like Robert Horry have no clearly defined role and power forward is a major question mark. The good news for the Lakers is that O'Neal and Bryant no longer have issues. Like Glen Rice, they understand they have to grow up to win a title someday. And Jackson's Chicago-imported staff will help them realize that potential.
Portland Trail Blazers
Last season 35-15, first
Additions F Scottie Pippen, G Steve Smith, F Detlef Schrempf
Losses G Isaiah Rider, G Jimmy Jackson, F Walt Williams, F Kelvin Cato, F Stacey Augmon, F Carlos Rogers, G Ed Gray, G Brian Shaw
Their starters make a combined $50 million and their total payroll is an astronomical $70 million-plus. Like George Steinbrenner, the Blazers' owner, Paul Allen, has given his general manager, Bob Whitsitt, the checkbook for a championship. Folding Scottie Pippen, Steve Smith and Detlef Schrempf into an already talented mix seems almost unfair. Although the Blazers have problems, ranging from Arvydas Sabonis's durability to Damon Stoudamire's decision-making, they're better and more mature than the team that was swept in the conference finals last season. On paper, anyhow.
Phoenix Suns
Last season 27-23, fourth
Additions G Penny Hardaway, C Oliver Miller, F Rodney Rogers, F Shawn Marion
Losses F Danny Manning, F Pat Garrity, G George McCloud
The Suns haven't won a playoff series since 1995, and the notion that they can play small-ball forever is ludicrous, especially since most of the game's premier big men now reside in the Western Conference. Still, picking up Penny Hardaway and Rodney Rogers makes Phoenix better. And after a scintillating preseason, the U.N.L.V. rookie Shawn Marion may be the steal of the draft. If Luc Longley can give Coach Danny Ainge a halfway-decent season, the second round is within reach.
Sacramento Kings
Last season 27-23, third
Additions G Nick Anderson, G Darrick Martin, G Tony Delk, C Bill Wennington
Losses G Tariq Abdul-Wahad, G Vernon Maxwell
In the last 15 years, the Kings have been featured on national television a dozen times. This season, Jason Williams, Chris Webber and their flashy friends have 20 scheduled national TV appearances, including 9 on NBC. Nick Anderson joins the league's most entertaining team, which no-looked its way into the post-season and was the only team to average more than 100 points a game. As fun as the Kings are, they're not very good defensively and will be hard-pressed to get past the second round.
Seattle SuperSonics
Last season 25-25, fifth
Additions F Horace Grant, G Vernon Maxwell, G Brent Barry, C Greg Foster
Losses F Dale Ellis, F Billy Owens, F Don MacLean, G Hersey Hawkins, G James Cotton, C Olden Polynice, F Detlef Schrempf, F Aaron Willams
With the addition of the trash-talking Vernon Maxwell and Greg Foster, Gary Payton can relax his gums and concentrate on getting his team back to the post-season. The Sonics have reacquired their edge, but beyond Payton, they have a lot of parts that don't quite fit.
Golden State Warriors
Last season 21-29, sixth
Additions G Mookie Blaylock, G Vonteego Cummings, G Tim Legler, F Jeff Foster
Losses G Bimbo Coles, F Duane Ferrell, G Muggsy Bogues, G Tony Delk, C Felton Spencer
For all the improvement the Warriors showed last season, P.J. Carlesimo is still no closer to reaching the playoffs entering his third year. The front line, with Antawn Jamison's development, is improving. But the only guy able to create his own shot is 39-year-old Terry Cummings.
Los Angeles Clippers
Last season 9-41, seventh
Additions G Derek Anderson, G Eric Murdock, F Lamar Odom
Losses F Lamond Murray, F-C Lorenzen Wright, G Pooh Richardson, F Rodney Rogers
They're not as bad as a lot of Clipper teams. The rookie Lamar Odom can flat-out play and will team with Maurice Taylor and Michael Olowakandi to form a decent frontline. Derek Anderson was a nice acquisition, a guy who plays with passion. But until the frugal owner, Donald Sterling, begins committing to the players over the long haul, the lottery beckons.
Phil JacksonThe biggest kid in the National Basketball Association jumped out of the largest freshwater lake in North America this summer and ended up on Phil Jackson's front lawn.
Shaquille O'Neal, the Los Angeles Lakers' All-Star center, had a rap concert to give before a crowd of some 15,000 in Montana, so he figured the least he could do was surprise Jackson, his new coach, with a visit to his log cabin in Kalispell.
O'Neal wanted to make a good first impression on Jackson, and drink in some of the sage's wisdom ahead of time.
He bounced on the trampoline with Jackson's children in the front yard. He went to karaoke night with Jackson's wife, June, and bellowed "I Believe I Can Fly" into a microphone. That day, O'Neal also experienced an epiphany of sorts.
"As soon as you walk through the front door, you see those big gold balls -- all six of 'em," he said recently, referring to the replicas of the championship trophies Jackson won with the Chicago Bulls. "The sun was hitting them. They were sparkling. You could see right through the crystal."
Among other things, Jackson is selling clarity to the Lakers -- and to a certain big man who has shown little inclination to grow up. As the 1999-2000 N.B.A. season opens Tuesday night with the Lakers in Utah, Jackson returns to the game without the world's greatest player on his side to help him anymore.
Already, he has learned that guiding Michael Jordan and the Bulls to six titles was one challenge; getting showtime wannabes to buy into the tao of the triangle is another one altogether.
"I don't know if they will grasp it all," Jackson said the other day. "Everything takes time and everything is instinctual. A lot of what you do you can't emulate or copy. You can't put it back in the same order you did it before. I may not introduce any of the usual stuff to the team until it's the right time. And it may not be the right time for four or five months.
"Maybe they just need to know they've got to come to work every day and stick their nose on the grindstone and be worked real hard. The Chicago Bulls had hard work and motivation to begin with. It was intense energy. So I didn't have to instill those kind of things. This is a team that has not worked real hard. They haven't gotten that intensity level. We have to build that first of all."
If the 54-year-old Jackson, who took over the Lakers in June, is experiencing a slow indoctrination to his players, they are also curious to find out about him. After his hiring, Derek Fisher and Rick Fox read "Sacred Hoops," Jackson's first book.
"The one thing that stuck out in my mind had nothing to do with religion or anything," Fisher said. "During one of their championship years before the finals, he was feeling that the team was bogged down and they were at a standstill. He recommended to them that they get a room at the hotel, order some pizzas and some beer. Just have some fun, hang out, be people and be human and let all this basketball stuff go for a night or whatever.
"That struck me as odd that a coach would recommend you to go out and have a couple of drinks and relax and be yourself for a change -- and not worry so much about trying to be who somebody else wants you to be. That's him. He sees where a team can be. And he sees the steps in between, getting there."
Fox said: "You can tell we have a lot more new-age stuff on the way. But I think he's waiting for us to pick up the triangle offense before he starts handing out gifts."
The triple-post offense is the adopted brainchild of the assistant coach Tex Winter, who came with Jackson from the Bulls along with the rest of Jackson's staff. The scheme revolves around movement and the notion that any part is interchangeable. Jordan and Scottie Pippen were its greatest practitioners.
The Lakers?
"I'd give us a low C so far," O'Neal said. "We've been running into each other a lot."
Jackson said: "Right now, they're having a lot of trouble. Some of the more conceptual people have ability to see it as a whole. A lot of guys are just seeing it as their individual self inside of this collective effort. So we've got a lot of concerns about people and their ability to grasp it."
John Salley and Ron Harper, two 35-year-old former Bulls, were brought back from retirement to play for the Lakers and help them with the transition to Jackson's ways.
"He's got to organize 12 companies to think one way," Salley said. "We're all millionaires with our own interests and investments, so that's what it comes down to. Phil's job is kind of what the Rockefellers do. When I was with Detroit, we were the black cloud hanging over Chicago. Phil removed that cloud when everybody bought into what he was doing. They did it through the triangle. That's how they finally beat us."
Jackson cannot predict the exact moment his new team might grasp Chicago's old system. When it happens, it happens suddenly.
Fox explained: "You have to be a visionary in a sense of reading the defense. I don't sense that we're going to go out this year and slice and dice somebody. It's like the chi of basketball, taking what they give us and turning it against them. That's exactly what this offense is all about."
The 30-year-old Fox, one of the more conceptual Lakers, straddles that fine L.A. line between the visionaries and the beautiful people. The ruggedly handsome forward married the actress and singer Vanessa Williams this summer and has appeared in several films himself.
Between them, the Lakers' Kobe Bryant and O'Neal have more commercials, record deals and endorsement contracts than most actors in their neighborhoods.
"To corral these guys in this very hectic town is a challenge," Jackson said. "It's fraught with distractions, disorder, and it's a hectic life for these kids."
He wants the 27-year-old O'Neal to mature into the team leader. He wants the 21-year-old Bryant, who is expected to miss the season's first weeks with a broken right hand, to slow down and not try to be an icon overnight.
"Shaq has given his full attention," Jackson said. "He's been wonderful to deal with. And Kobe has a Michael Jordan willful kind of way about him, where he'll do anything to get better. He's almost too dedicated in a way that a coach loves.
"I have a child that just graduated from college. She's 22. Rather than jumping into a career the moment she finishes her degree, there's some latitude about you enjoying life and getting into life. I think that's very important for kids to let their hair down a little bit. Kobe has never had that chance. This is good for him, in a way, to be injured. To step back and look at things.
"They've all been very receptive to buying into what we're doing. But it'll take time. Eventually, I think they're going to get the fever of what it takes to be a championship team."
During his yearlong sabbatical after stepping down from the Bulls, Jackson played pickup basketball in Woodstock, N.Y., with friends. He gave motivational speeches and worked for his former Knicks teammate Bill Bradley, who is seeking the Democratic nomination for President.
Jackson did some writing, caught up with his children, visited a brother in Virginia and did everything a basketball coach is not able to do.
"I had never been to Hawaii," he said. "That's something you just don't get to do in the middle of the winter."
A week before he was offered a five-year, $30 million deal by the Lakers late last spring, Jackson's closest friends were intimating that he would take another year off and return to the N.B.A. for the 2000-1 season. They suggested he would be instrumental in Bradley's campaign and stay as far removed from the game as he could. Something changed his mind.
"The challenge isn't whether I can win a championship without Michael Jordan or whether I can get Kobe and Shaq to play together and win," Jackson said. "I wanted to bring this system and philosophy to another team and see it work. I was paid a lot of money to speak to people, to carry certain philosophies, carry certain ideals in different situations."
He views Pat Riley's ability to succeed with three franchises as a measuring stick.
"From that standpoint, you have to say his philosophy and his style works," Jackson said of Riley. "He's a pioneer in his field. I'd like to be known for the same thing, that I could pick up and take my philosophy to another system, and then it works.
"The money was a consideration, but this is a team that could be there. We're missing a little piece. We're not as talented as a lot of people think we are. But we're going to be there because of what we have. Can we do it down the stretch? Can we do it in the playoffs? Are we going to be intelligent enough and can we get the chemistry right so we can do it? That's why I'm here."
It is a gradual process, this making the Lakers see beyond their own athleticism and physical prowess. The first step is showing them how to work and learn a new offense. Soon, Jackson will try to tap further into their psyches.
"Somebody asked me about getting books for this team," he said. "I don't have any clue what their preferences are. I can't go out and buy an intimate thing like a book, which I consider an intimate gift, a door opening that says, 'I know a little bit about you and here's something you might be interested in.' "
Harper said: "That was Chicago. This isn't Chicago. I'm pretty sure we'll get some books on this team to read. Now, I don't know if the guys on this team will enjoy reading those books. . . ."
Over the past few weeks, O'Neal has seen more of Jackson the drill sergeant than he has of the introspective soul who orchestrated group meditations in Chicago and espoused the spiritual power of Native American artifacts.
"He blows the whistle, everyone turns around," O'Neal said. "Like my father when I was a kid or Dale Brown at L.S.U. As good as I am, I don't think people understand that I don't have a problem with authority."
But O'Neal knows that one of these days, Jackson will push the envelope and try to reach his players by other means. When that happens, he said, he will think back to the gleaming trophies in Montana and accept whatever "gifts of knowledge," as he put it, wind up in his locker cubicle.
"When it's time for me to step up my game, I will," he said. "And if not, I'll eat live insects and dog food on national TV, with chopsticks. I'll even let you pick the insects."
Harper was right. This isn't Chicago.
AP HeatThe Miami Heat fared no better during the offseason than they did during the postseason.
As a result, when the Heat tip off Tuesday against Detroit, Pat Riley will be coaching a familiar cast with a reputation for first-round playoff flops.
"Does one trade shake it up?" Riley says. "Maybe one does. But I didn't get the one I wanted."
A Jamal Mashburn-for-Tim Duncan deal never materialized. Same with Voshon Lenard-for-Reggie Miller. Tim Hardaway-for-Allen Iverson didn't happen either.
And so Hardaway, Lenard, Mashburn and company will get one more chance with Riley - but only one. The name Pat doesn't stand for patience. This season, Riley's fifth in Miami, will determine whether his blueprint for a championship is a bust. A shakeup is all but certain unless the Heat advance deep into the playoffs.
"It's time for them to realize that they're going to have to step up and perform and produce," Riley says. "I think we're as good as any team in the Eastern Conference, and this year, once and for all, we're going to find out."
Led by Hardaway, Alonzo Mourning, Mashburn and P.J. Brown, the Heat have won three consecutive Atlantic Division titles. But only once in the past four years have they advanced beyond the opening round of the playoffs, easily the worst stretch of postseason failure in Riley's 18-year coaching career.
Last May, the Heat became the first No. 1 seed from the Eastern Conference to lose against a No. 8 seed. In 1998, Miami was the first No. 2 seed from the East to be eliminated by a No. 7 seed. To make matters worse, both defeats came against the Heat's archrivals, the New York Knicks.
"We've been through a lot of heartaches," Brown says. "So let's see what kind of character does the team have. Let's see if we can use all that stuff that's happened to us in the last couple of years to try to get to the NBA Finals."
Everything starts with Hardaway, who is entering the final season of a four-year contract. The 33-year-old point guard has bad knees and shot 27 percent in the playoff loss to the Knicks. But a chance to test the free-agent market after this season could inspire him, and Riley expects him to benefit from the league's crackdown on physical play.
"Tim's going to have a field day," Riley says. "Without guys being able to beat him up and put a hand on him, I think he's going to have his best season."
Otherwise, the new league rules figure to hurt the Heat, who may have to abandon their bruising style of defense. They attempted an uptempo pace during the preseason and averaged 26 turnovers in the final four exhibition games.
Mourning, 29, keeps improving and finished second to Karl Malone in last season's MVP balloting. But the Heat still lack a scorer at shooting guard or small forward, which means no reliable offensive option beyond Mourning and Hardaway unless Mashburn or Lenard finally blossom.
"We have to do it overnight," Mashburn says. "In the NBA, you never know where you'll be tomorrow."
Some things you do know: In January, the Heat will move into a new 19,600-seat arena. In April, they'll likely be in the playoffs.
And in June?
"I'm committed to this team," Riley says. "I believe in this team. I love these guys.
"But we've got another year to find out what we can do."
Mourning January 2000USA Today
A new Alonzo Mourning has dawned for the Miami Heat.
In past seasons, the eight-year veteran played with such great
intensity that it often worked against him. He frequently was
baited into losing his composure, which led to technical fouls
that hurt his team.
The sun has set on that player, the one who averaged 10 technicals
each of his first seven NBA seasons and was ejected 10 times,
and risen on one who has picked up just one technical this season.
The result: Mourning is having the finest season of his career
and the Heat have the second-best record in the Eastern Conference.
Mourning is averaging 22.6 points, 9.9 rebounds and a league-best
4.50 blocked shots. His play has earned him on spot on the U.S.
Olympic team. He is a virtual lock for his fifth All-Star appearance
and will be a strong candidate for league MVP.
"Any player who has been successful, through his journey he has
had to learn through adversity, Adversity introduces a man to
himself. Adversity has given me an opportunity to grow and mature
and make better decisions," he says.
Mourning has had lots of difficult experiences to learn from over
the years. Most notably: he was suspended for the deciding game
of a 1998 playoff series against the New York Knicks, which the
Heat lost, for fighting with forward Larry Johnson.
"We've had conversations over the years, but some of the things
that have happened over the years -- the fights, the ejections,
the technical fouls -- he has taken it on himself," Heat coach
Pat Riley says. "He knows how important he is to this franchise.
He's a businessman now. He has to value the fact that he is the
franchise player. He's being paid a lot of money. He has a real
responsibility in that position."
Mourning's importance to the Heat is greater this season than
ever. Tim Hardaway has missed 21 games with a knee injury, and
Jamal Mashburn missed five games with a sprained ankle last month.
That means more of the load has fallen to Mourning. It also means
his playing out of control emotionally is even more detrimental
to the Heat.
"He's maturing obviously, and he knows how important it is to
control his intensity," Riley says. "The only way he can play
is all-out. He is an emotionally intense man. He brings that to
the court. But he knows what to throw out and what to keep.
"He's tried to do certain things as the game has sort of changed,
and he's become familiar with the (new) rules. It used to be a
push-shove game, and he always had to fend people off. He's using
his quickness now."
Besides harnessing his intensity, Mourning has diversified his
offense. He is shooting more medium-range jumpers and taking defenders
off the dribble and not always trying to overpower opponents.
"The No. 1 thing is patience," forward P.J. Brown says. "He's
letting the game come to him."
"Each year you try to better your game and you try to improve,"
Mourning says. "That's extremely important because teams are
watching tape of you. You've got to come with something different.
You definitely don't want to be one-dimensional. That was one
of the raps against me, especially in the playoffs against the
Bulls. They said, 'He's going to try to get to the middle and
shoot the hook shot.' I think that kind of got under my skin a
little bit."
Mourning has not expanded his offense to the detriment of his
defensive responsibilities. He blocked shots in the final seconds
in consecutive games against Dallas and Utah last month to preserve
victories and has had at least five blocks in 16 games this season.
"Playing defense is just a part of me," he says. "Even if things
aren't going well for me offensively, I'm going to rebound and
block shots. You're not going to have good shooting nights every
night."
Says Riley: "A lot of people don't understand the subtleties
of what he's doing defensively and how important he is to us.
We'd be nowhere without Zo."
Karl Malone USA TODAYUSA TODAY NBA writer David DuPree looks at how NBA stars play
the game.
The particulars: Malone, 36, is not only one of the oldest
players in the league but still one of its most consistent. He's
considered one of the strongest and could be the most well-conditioned
one, as well. His nickname is The Mailman, given to him when he
was in college by a sportswriter, for the obvious reason: He always
delivered. Loves motorcycles, semi trucks, hunting with a bow
and arrow or a rifle, fishing and hiking. He also is an active
NRA member and doesn't flinch at stating his beliefs on anything.
He owns a cattle ranch and three auto dealerships, one of them
with teammate John Stockton, Stockton-to-Malone Honda. He and
his wife, Kay, have four children: daughters Kadee Lynn, Kyle
Ann and Karlee, and son Karl Jr. He is on the NBA's 50th Anniversary
All-Time team; won gold medals with the last two Olympic teams;
NBA most valuable player in 1997 and 1999; and first-team All-NBA
for 11 consecutive seasons. He's in the first year of a four-year,
$ 66.5 million contract.
The road to the Jazz: Played at Louisiana Tech and was
Utah's first-round pick (13th overall) in 1985.
Style: He's a rugged, take-no-prisoners type who never
takes a step backward. He dishes out the punishment and takes
it in return with a smile. With hard work, he made himself an
excellent free throw shooter and developed a very reliable medium-range
jump shot to go with his inside power game. He isn't flashy. He
is the poster boy for old school. He earns every penny and expects
all of his teammates to do the same. Despite his age and size
(6-9, 260), he's still one of the best in the league at finishing
the break. Get in his way and pay the price.
His go-to move: He and Stockton are the best in the league
at running the pick-and-roll, the most basic of all basketball
plays. It's like the Green Bay Packers going off tackle. You know
it's coming, but they dare you to stop it.
How to defend him: Keep him outside, if possible, and try
to get him to settle for jump shots. He is excellent at passing
out of double-teams, so when he's in the low post, you have to
double him right away and be prepared to rotate quickly to the
open man.
By the numbers: He's the league's third all-time scorer
behind Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Wilt Chamberlain. Going into Wednesday's
game he was fourth in the league in scoring (25.9) and 10th in
rebounding (10.2) this season. One of the most durable players
in NBA history, he has missed only six out of a possible 1,136
games in 15 seasons. He averaged 14.9 points as a rookie and 21.7
or more every season since. He came into the season with career
averages of 26.1 points, 10.3 rebounds and 3.1 assists.
His peers: Patrick Ewing, Joe Kleine, Chris Mullin, Detlef
Schrempf, Charles Oakley, Bill Wennington, Terry Porter and A.C.
Green are the only other active players from the 1985 draft class.
To whom he is most easily compared: Moses Malone. The game
is reduced to its simplest form -- showing up, scoring and rebounding.
No frills.
Imagine him with the Philadelphia 76ers: Allen Iverson,
with an inside presence and another scorer and tough guy like
Malone, would be an even more effective player and the 76ers would
be legitimate contenders.
Rodman: Mavericks Era San Jose Mercury News
Dennis Rodman was ejected again -- and lingered again.
Rodman was tossed for the second time in his five games with the Dallas Mavericks, this time following a go-round with longtime sparring partner Karl Malone as Utah won 92-85 Thursday night in Dallas.
Rodman was ejected with 4:02 left. The game was delayed because Rodman again took his time leaving the court following his second technical.
Rodman had a slow exit from his previous ejection, and it led to a one-game suspension. He considers the league out to get him, so he probably wouldn't be surprised if it happened again.
"(Commissioner) David Stern and (vice president) Rod Thorn, they need to get their . . . kicked. It's ridiculous. Just let Dennis Rodman play," he said. "I'm not throwing cheap blows. I'm not out there trying to kill anybody."
Rodman and Malone got a double foul for tripping each other early in the third quarter. Soon after, Rodman got a technical for arguing an illegal defense call.
Malone was running up the court away from the ball when he and Rodman got tangled again in the fourth quarter. Rodman was called for a foul, and whatever he said to the official who called it earned him his second technical.
"The referees have got to understand, people are not here to see them," Rodman said. "I do my thing. I don't take any cheap blows. I try to help the team win. I can't do that if I'm getting kicked out. It's unfair to me."
Once teammates and coaches convinced Rodman to leave the court, his traditional jersey toss into the stands triggered a courtside fight between the team doctor and a fan.
"Dennis always has a knack of keeping the attention focused on him, even when he's walking down the street," Utah Coach Jerry Sloan said.
The Mavericks are 1-4 in the games Rodman has played. They won the game he missed while suspended and had won seven of eight before he arrived.
Rodman has led Dallas in rebounding all five games, but he has scored only 10 points and made three field goals while picking up four technical fouls. His only point against Utah came on a first-quarter free throw with his eyes closed. He was laughing so hard afterward that when he tried it again, the shot ticked the front of the net, narrowly avoiding an air ball.
His 12 rebounds against the Jazz were his fewest this season.
Newsweek April ShaqLast season Shaquille O'Neal kept to a well-established routine. In the evening, after recovering from the rigors of practice, he would head over to a local high-school gym and work on free-throw shooting, his Achilles' heel. Later, the Lakers' superstar center would plunge into the social whirl at a local hot spot or a celebrity party. And in the morning, Shaq would flip on a Jay-Z CD and make a phone call to the NBA brass to gripe about the beatings he was taking on the court and how the refs weren't doing anything about it.
This season, only the free-throw ritual remains. Shaq has cut back on the carousing, the result of an ultimatum by new coach Phil Jackson to what was one of the league's most notorious party teams. And he's halted the phone calls, too. "I'd call, but nothing ever changed," says O'Neal, who is still just 28 and in his eighth pro season. "So I'm serving notice. I don't want trouble in the playoffs. But I'm going to come at people the way they come at me, and it ain't going to be pretty."
The playoffs won't be pretty, but Shaq has been serving notice on the NBA this entire season, leading the Lakers to the league's best record and making them the favorite in the postseason championship chase that begins this weekend. O'Neal has complemented his always prodigious scoring talent with some heretofore unrevealed passing skills. And freed from nagging abdominal strains that have plagued him throughout his first three years in L.A, he has rebounded and blocked shots with renewed ferocity. Indeed Shaq, a lock for his first MVP award, has lived up to the plaque over his locker--IDGAF, or, in modest Shaq-speak, "I Dominate the Game Always and Forever."
It is an interesting choice of slogans, given that Jackson, when he took the Laker helm last summer, suggested that O'Neal had lost some of his dominance. Yet the coach does not attribute the change to any of his own innovations, like the triangle offense, or his Zen techniques. "It's Shaq's desire to do all the things a complete player does," Jackson says. Shaq, though, credits his coach. "I always had the complete game, but other coaches told me to just shoot, shoot and shoot so I took the f-----g shot when I got it," he says. "Now with Phil's system it allows me to pass, block, dunk--all those things that get me on the highlight reel on ESPN."
In truth, previous coaches simply didn't have the clout to tell their 7-foot-1-inch, 315-pound star to do anything he didn't feel like doing. Jackson, with the credibility that comes with six championship rings, had clout to spare. And his no-nonsense style resonated with Shaq, reminding him of his stepfather, a career military man. "I needed to be challenged," says O'Neal. "Phil immediately told me what was wrong with my game and what to do to change it. That's what I always had at home. My stepfather didn't want to hear any backtalk about why something wasn't done. You just made sure it was done or suffered the consequences."
It was O'Neal who lobbied Laker management hardest to hire Jackson. Still, Shaq was nervous about the change. He traveled to Jackson's Montana ranch before the season to explain his concerns about Shaq's role and to allay his anxieties that the former Chicago Bulls coach might favor his high-leaping teammate Kobe Bryant, whose style was more reminiscent of Michael Jordan's. But in his very first team meetings, Jackson dealt with the Shaq-Kobe divide. There would be one team leader in the Laker locker room--the coach. On the court, though, Shaq was the man, the pivotal figure at both ends of the floor. "I never had a problem with Kobe, but because of the frustrations of the last two seasons, we would blame others and sometimes each other for things that happened," says O'Neal. "But I'm a student of the game so I know any great team needs a one-two punch. Kobe and I are that duo."
Shaq is enough of a student of the game to also know that this year's version of the Lakers will ultimately be judged by its playoff performance. And so, too, will O'Neal. All three years in L.A. Shaq has endured ignominious playoff flops, twice losing in 4-0 sweeps. And when he did reach the NBA finals playing with the Orlando Magic, O'Neal shot free throws at a mortifying .393 rate as Orlando also was swept 4-0. He feels the weight of all that history. "I'm tired of other people winning when we should have," he says. "I want the 'bling-bling' [hip-hop parlance for a big, sparkly ring] and not to be home before the end of June."
However much O'Neal has matured on the court, off it he still loves kids' movies, videogames and Big Macs. He maintains an undiminished delight in his celebrity and, at times, still seems amazed by the glamorous circle in which he hangs. His birthday bash last month at the ultrahip Voodoo Lounge brought out a who's who of black Hollywood, including Jamie Foxx, Dr. Dre, Vivica A. Fox and Snoop Dogg.
It's always showtime for Shaq: he wore a shimmering purple suit and bowler hat to a recent game while sidelined with an ankle sprain. The only time he defied Jackson was when the coach planned a "Secret Santa" grab bag, with each player instructed to give his designated teammate a small--less than $100--Christmas gift. O'Neal gave point guard Derek Fisher a $5,000 diamond Rolex. "I knew he wasn't going to give something for 100 bucks," laughs Fisher. "He doesn't believe in cheap."
Shaq also doesn't believe he's gotten his due. He is sensitive to slights and, at times, frets about a perceived succession of them during his career. He says the NBA doesn't know how to market the really big guys, guys like him with size 22-feet. ("Nobody knows how to treat a big man, particularly one who can break-dance.") He resents that the league has always looked for its "next Michael" in smaller, "pretty boys" like Grant Hill. ("You don't hardly hear about Grant Hill anymore.") Though fans now chant "MVP" at Shaq, he still puzzles over why they at first seemed to favor Kobe over him. ("Kobe caught a wave. He can show flashes of greatness.")
In fact, O'Neal arrived in the league with great fanfare. An early ad compared him to immortals like Wilt Chamberlain and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar before he had played a full season of NBA ball. But as Jordan increasingly dominated the game, other stars were pushed to the periphery. Shaq no longer has contracts with either of his two original, big sponsors, Pepsi and Reebok. He has soured on "the whole marketing thing" and insists he doesn't want new endorsement deals, even if there's renewed interest after his stellar season. "I'll just play with the chips I have," he says. O'Neal's rap music and movies didn't fare well or endear him to fans. They didn't view Shaq as he saw himself--as something of a Renaissance man--but rather as someone whose heart wasn't totally in the game.
Though O'Neal still has serious rap and acting aspirations, no one can doubt he is playing with great heart. And Jackson believes he has instilled in the team "a certain amount of pride that makes them want to get to the next level." But to get to the very top, Shaq must now demonstrate that he can DGAF in the playoffs, too.
