It Was All a Dream

One More Chance...

Somebody pinch me. For real? Kobe, Shaq, and Phil back at it like Illmatic. Only in Hollywood. Arguably the greatest NBA coach of all-time torn between arguably two of the NBA's most talented players ever. Shaq, a center that was so skilled and so damn physically intimidating that he influenced an entire generation of young Seven-footers to work on their jumpers and play the four. Kobe, labeled the Second Coming since he started getting burn off the L.A. bench, blossomed into one of the greatest all around shooting guards of all-time and damn sure the scariest scoring threat in league history. Then you have Phil, he of the 9 rings and eccentric coaching philosophy. They had enough talent to go on a Bill Russell run between the two of them, but they also had enough ego to make Usain Bolt and Jeremy Piven look humble. The three-peat was incredible but everyone knows that there should've been so much more to them than that. But with Kobe's legal trouble, the failure that was the 2004 season, and Shaq's constant bitching about money and inability to stay in shape in the offseason, came the bitter divorce. Mitch and Jerry pulled the trigger on a dynasty.

Everyone all ready knows the he said he said stories. The interviews, the books, the freestyles, all the bullshit. Shaq would drop a jab at Kobe in an interview, Kobe would drop 50 on someone in response. There was no doubt that their was hate involved. Shaq got his sweet revenge by teaming with Flash and bringing a ring to Miami. Kobe gunned his way into the record books and struggled to get out of the first round with his D-League like squads. With Shaq gone and D-Fish playing elsewhere as well, Kobe went into "Me against the World" mode, trusting only himself and his jumper and almost pushing himself out of L.A. in the process. Then last year, something finally clicked, Lamar started playing like the guy they traded for, D-Fish swam back, and Sasha decided to turn on the machine during working hours. Memphis chipped in with a little help too. Pau was the legit second banana that Kobe had longed for. As things where finally shaping up in L.A. Shaq's personal and professional life was spiraling downward. The Heat where tanking, his home life was all over the tabloids, Shaq was apparently possessed by the ghost of Kandi-Man, and was promptly shipped to the valley of the Suns in exchange for a disgruntled basketball swiss army knife with an attitude problem. Kobe fell short in the Finals and Shaq inquired to the taste of his own anus. Terrible.

Then something crazy happened. Shaq was reborn in Phoenix this season(Apparently Jesus Christ is the Sun's Trainer. Who knew?), playing more like the guy who won 4 rings than the guy that caused D'Antoni to head to the Big Apple, and Kobe, now more than ever apparently has trust in his teammates and his coach and has finally mastered the team leader and 4th quarter killer role that Phil has been molding him for since day one. Both guys had incredible first halves of the season and when it was announced that they would be reunited for one night in Phoenix, the media jumped on the story as if Michael Phelps and Alex Rodriguez came out of the closet together. The best part was that all parties involved seemed genuinely excited about the opportunity to get back together again. As soon as Shaqerwokee entered the building and Kobe nailed his first jumper there was no question whose night this was. The Big Legendaries where back, at least for one night.


Kobe threw down dunks and nailed threes, Shaq pounded the paint and threw in some crazy passes, handles, and cuts to the basket. Basically they got their 2001 on. As I watched the game with a huge silly smile on my face I couldn't help but think about how surreal of a moment this was. Even two years ago who could've ever imagined in their wildest dreams that we would ever see Kobe and Shaq playing together, laughing together, winning together except on ESPN Classic. Not me. I figured we'd eventually see a retired gray bearded Shaq and naturally balded Kobe give an interview well into their fifties about their story and how all the b.s. was behind them but not this soon. This was some Pac and Biggie-style beef. At least the basketball version of that. These dudes were not collaborating on a court any time soon. No fucking way. God had a bigger plan. This ,along with Magic's last All-Star game, will always hold a special place in heart. I guess this is just another microcosm in sports that shows that real change is possible. Here's to hoping that Pac and B.I.G. had a similar moment on the other side.