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Youth movement NBA's new superstars stepped in and filled it up
It was a weekend for Shaq to step back, and the rest of the NBA's young guns to step forward. Vince Carter (50 points) provided an answer to the Answer (54). Kobe Bryant swept out the Kings with career highs in both points (48) and rebounds (16). Jamal Mashburn used his stunning arsenal of low post moves and silky shot to keep the Hornets buzzing. Meanwhile, O'Neal kept a relatively low profile on the court, thanks to foul trouble that plagued him in both games at Arco Arena. After annihilating the Kings in Games 1 & 2, he settled for mere dominance in Games 3 & 4. Off the court, it was a different story. Shaq had to apologize publicly to celebrities Cindy Crawford, Venus Willliams and Aaliyah for telling a local radio station that he had slept with each of them. An embarrassed O'Neal said he was just kidding. Who knew Shaq was capable of getting his entire size-22 sneaker into his mouth like that? Here's what else we learned:
1. Creativity RulesIt's no surprise that Iverson (54 points), Carter (50), Bryant (48) and Mashburn (36) posted monster games in the second round. With so much advance scouting and preparation, along with increased intensity, it's often hard for NBA teams to execute plays in the half court, especially in the later rounds. Players who can create their own shots when the 24-second clock is winding down are that much more valuable. That's why the loss of Spurs guard Derek Anderson could prove critical to San Antonio in the next round.
2. Kings lost their heads Good soul food apparently isn't the only
commodity lacking in Sacramento. Other than Shaq's dominance, the most
glaring aspect of L.A.'s sweep was the Kings' consistent dumb play.
Stupid passes. Bad shot selection. European-style matador defense. It was
only fitting that their last dying gasp in Game 4 occurred when Chris
Webber passed the ball straight to a Lakers player. Call it an omen: The
last time Webber committed such a memorable end-of-game gaffe (his
phantom timeout in the '93 NCAA Finals), he never wore that team's
uniform again.
3. Glen Grunwald should be executive of the yearMidseason trades for Jerome Williams, Keon Clark and Chris Childs have transformed the Raptors from a plodding mediocre club to a fast-paced high-octane group that is giving the top-seeded Sixers all they can handle. His selection of Morris Peterson at No. 18 in last year's draft wasn't too shabby either. Kings GM Geoff Petrie pulled off a coup in acquiring Doug Christie, Bobby Jackson and Hidayet Turkoglu. And Don Nelson did a great job in Big D. But Grunwald, befitting a hockey town like Toronto, made his changes on the fly.
4. There's power in headbandsIt might make them look like rec league players, but how else does one explain what the Hornets did this weekend? Down 2-0 to the Bucks in their best-of-seven series, Charlotte won both games at the Hive to keep alive their title hopes. Charlotte pounded the boards, played defense and took full advantage of Bucks miscues (24 turnovers in Game 4) to show once again they aren't as soft as "tissue paper." Here's guessing Bucks coach George Karl didn't get a headband as a 50th birthday present Saturday.
5. The Mavs have fangsSay this much about Nellie's Mavs: They don't quit. First they rally from 0-2 to beat the Jazz, winning Game 5 in Salt Lake, then they fight back and force a fifth game with the Spurs. Meanwhile, Dallas stars are starting to look like, well, the Dallas Stars. Taking a cue from guard Steve Nash (seven stitches in the forehead against Utah), Mavs forward Dirk Nowitzki had his tooth knocked out by an errant elbow. He picked the tooth up off the floor, ran to the locker room to have it reinserted, then returned moments later. Nowitzki (now pronounced No-with-kee) wound up with 30 points.
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