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'Mob' mentality Nets may want to rethink their strategy on ShaqPosted: Saturday June 08, 2002 1:25 AMUpdated: Saturday June 08, 2002 2:29 AM
LOS ANGELES -- Time to call Tony Soprano. Maybe the Nets can get the TV mafia don from New Jersey to kidnap Lakers center Shaquille O’Neal for a while. It might be their only hope. For the second straight game, Shaq lowered the ba-da-bing, ba-da-boom on the Nets on Friday in Game 2 of the NBA Finals. Taking advantage of mostly single coverage, the 7-foot-1 O’Neal powered his way over, around and through New Jersey’s defense all night. When the dunk-a-thon ended, O’Neal had 40 points on 14-of-23 shooting and his Lakers had a 2-0 series lead. "He’s a monster," Nets head coach Byron Scott said. "That’s all I can say about him." Scott might have to go the Soprano route because his own "mob" certainly isn’t working. Shaq riddled the Nets’ power(less) trio of Todd MacCulloch, Aaron Williams and Jason Collins like a tommy gun. He posted them, spun around them and outran them down court. Nothing the Nets did seemed to work. When MacCulloch pushed Shaq up to the elbow area of the lane, O'Neal backed him in for a 10-footer off the glass. When Jason Kidd double-teamed from the top, he split the double with a dribble and a layup. When MacCulloch tried to front him, Shaq spun inside for an alley-oop dunk off a perfect lob pass from Brian Shaw. Shaq has not only killed the Nets with his scoring, but he has also helped revive L.A.’s dormant 3-point shooting. When the Lakers are struggling to hit from downtown, as they did against the Kings in the Western Conference finals, it’s usually because they’re not moving the ball inside-out. With New Jersey unable to slow Shaq down low in Game 2, the Lakers hit 9-of-16 from 3-point range. Late in the third quarter, the Nets made a run to get the score close. But after Shaq spun left for a short hook, beating a passive double team by Richard Jefferson, the Nets came harder the next time downcourt. Shaq foiled the tactic by swinging the ball out to Brian Shaw, who drilled a 3-pointer to put the Lakers ahead 77-57. "In the second half, we doubled him a little more, but he kicked it out and guys made shots," Scott said. "I don’t know what to really do against Shaq right now." Shaq’s dominance through the first two games of the series (he had 36 points and 16 boards in Game 1) has been so complete it’s hard to blame Scott for being lost. At this point, Shaq could probably take the court with James Gandolfini hanging on his back and still get the job done. Nonetheless, here are some things Scott might want to consider trying in an effort to slow down L.A.'s Diesel:
The Nets must deny him his first choice (if possible), and force him to move his feet to get the ball. They also must not let Shaq beat them downcourt as he did with Collins on one embarrassing play in the second quarter. The Lakers, of course, will be ready for any and all strategies the Nets might attempt. In the first two games, New Jersey tried to follow the Kings' lead by pressuring the entry passes to Shaq and not doubling right away. L.A. countered by swinging the ball around the perimeter and getting it to Shaq on the move. The Lakers also have been smart about not rushing into traps set by New Jersey’s defense. "We held some cutters so they couldn’t double off cutters just to see what they were going to do," Lakers coach Phil Jackson said. "They were hesitant to try to get the ball out of his hands." Here’s some advice for Scott for Game 3: Don’t be hesitant. Double Shaq right away. Even if the Lakers don’t send cutters. Foul him often and hard. Make him catch it on the move. And if that doesn’t work, pick up the phone and dial S-O-P-R-A-N-O. Marty Burns covers pro basketball for CNNSI.com. Click here to send Marty a question or comment.
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