As a junior in high school, Lauren is an avid sports fan. She is the captain of her high school soccer team. She also enjoys reading, writing, playing basketball, and watching sports in her spare time. Coulda ...woulda ... shoulda can be hotly debated, but clearly Kobe Bryant would not be basking in the in the Los Angeles sun denying that a rift between the big man and himself ever occurred, and projecting that his troops will make the playoffs next year.
It?s April; and the all-star should be earning rings for his team, not polishing them for someone else.
The same holds true for the big fella.. Superman is atop the NBA East, basking in the success he has brought to Miami, acknowledging the rift that forced him to leave his most compatible teammate, and projecting that his team will be champions in June.
Yet despite Bryant?s desire to be the star of the Lakers, without deferring to Shaq, the Lakers have missed the playoffs for the first time since 1993.
Undoubtedly, the plan to advertise Bryant as the star of the Lakers has been unsuccessful. Without an appearance in the playoffs, Bryant?s airtime will be cut short and the power shifted from the West to the East with the transfer of 325 pounds.
The puny hopeless East is now the dominant force.
With the number one seed entering the playoffs, the Miami Heat are the hot ticket in town and a thigh has never been so commonly discussed.
However, when it is Shaq?s thigh, the thigh that holds the key to a championship, it is suddenly an important topic of discussion.
Are the Miami Heat vulnerable until Shaq?s bruised thigh is fully healed? If Game 1 against the Nets is any indication, the thigh won?t be an issue. After all, Shaquille O?Neal at forty percent is more dominant than no Shaquille.
With all the attention focused on Shaq, Wade is severely under valued. The quality he provides as a sophomore is incomparable, whether it be swerving through a crowd in the paint to make a crucial layup to end the quarter, crashing the board against a man twice his size, or deferring to someone beyond the perimeter, he has the potential to be one of the most powerful players in the league.
The other role players fade out of the spotlight, as well. Damon Jones is always beyond the arc, hitting a clutch shot, Udonis Haslem is a name unfamiliar to most, but he is widely reputed as a key player in the success of the franchise by Miami fans, and Keyon Dooling is a scrappy but competent player.
Aside from Shaq, the star power of the Miami Heat isn?t what captures the attention of NBA. It?s the cliche story about a city that stole the success of the Los Angeles Lakers and are now the beast of the east that makes it memorable.