<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">This is for all you shameless and brainless Shaq fans: Shaq is wack. Before I go any further, I'd like to insert the following disclaimer: This is not one of those "Shaq is not an athlete" arguments. Anybody who thinks that what Shaq does is unathletic or easy, even for him, should try grabbing a rebound over Arvydas Sabonis and then dunking the ball in his face. (I've actually tried it. It wasn't nearly as easy as I thought it would be.) I hold nothing against Shaq personally and don't blame him for doing what he knows he has to do to be the best. So "Shaq is Wack" should not be misconstrued. I'm not mad at Shaq; I'm mad at all you fans who root for him, all you savages with no soul and no brain. I don't think Shaq has been given enough blame in Kobe and Shaq's constant hardcore finger-wagging. Did the Heat win a championship with him last year? No. Did the Lakers win the past two championships with him as a laker? Did they get grossly outplayed 2 years ago in the finals? Yes! I sincerely beg of every last one of you who find solace and safety in a winner, with your O'Neal jerseys and Shaq posters, to settle down and try to see the sheer brilliance and artistry in what players like Allen Iverson and Kobe Bryant are doing right now. If Kobe ever becomes the best player in the NBA, and I sincerely hope that he does, he will prove what Wayne Gretsky proved in hockey, that you don't have to be the biggest or the strongest to be the best. Wouldn't that be beautiful? Until then, however, you soulless, cowardly, brainless parasites are going to continue sitting glued to your television sets, cheering stupidly as Shaq mercilessly defaces and invalidates everything I used to love about watching basketball</div> If all you KObe fans would only read Jax's book you would realise that it wasn't Shaq's fault, it was Kobe's. No, the heat didn't win a championship last year. The lakers didn't make the playoffs. That settles that. I think MJ has already proved that you don't have to be the biggest and strongest to be the best of all time. Kobe hasn't, because Shaq, Hakeem, Wilt and Russel will always be better. Shaq fans are souless and brainless huh? Number of times Kobe has been accused of rape and cheated on his wife and daughter: 1 Number of times Shaq has been accused of rape and cheated on his wife and kids: 0 I think that settles that.
It's pretty funny how the finger is slowly but surely moving toward's Shaq's direction. In my opinion if there is someone to blame, blame them all. Espn classic did a good "5 Reasons not to blame.....". Shaq and Kobe should up just sucked up the pride and played ball, Phil Jackson should of taken more controll of the team, Mitch Kupchack should of put some order on the shaq and kobe feud, (if jerry west was still GM he wouldnt tolerate this BS and Shaq might still be in LA playing happily with Kobe). In the end the media blame is on Kobe, the more thought out blame is on Shaq, and the truth for the blame is everyone on the Lakers staff and roster who could of helped to prevent this.
<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">If all you KObe fans would only read Jax's book you would realise that it wasn't Shaq's fault, it was Kobe's.</div> Dont pretend you've read the book or that you know whats in it. You're just repeating what you've heard on t.v. about the book. I think that the blame is definetly 50/50 but since shaq was lovable and kobe was on trial, the fans and media sided with him. <div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Number of times Kobe has been accused of rape and cheated on his wife and daughter: 1 Number of times Shaq has been accused of rape and cheated on his wife and kids: 0 I think that settles that</div> Many athletes cheat on their wives when they are on the road, it's the same as rockstars and it comes with being away for so long. Kobe was just unfortunate enough to do it with someone who tried to rob him. Im not saying its right, im just saying hes not alone.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting virve119:</div><div class="quote_post">Number of times Shaq has been accused of rape and cheated on his wife and kids: 0 I think that settles that.</div> Well, if you're talking about the number of times he's been caught, then yes it would have to be zero....
<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Dont pretend you've read the book or that you know whats in it. You're just repeating what you've heard on t.v. about the book. I think that the blame is definetly 50/50 but since shaq was lovable and kobe was on trial, the fans and media sided with him.</div> You're right I haven't read it, but I do know the gist of it. Phil Jackson, arguably the greatest coach of all time, couldn't get along with Kobe. He's been quoted as saying Kobe is "childish" and "uncoachable". And he isn't the only one either. Former teammates like Karl Malone (one of the greatest players of all time) and Chucky Atkins both had several problems with Kobe. <div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Many athletes cheat on their wives when they are on the road, it's the same as rockstars and it comes with being away for so long. Kobe was just unfortunate enough to do it with someone who tried to rob him. Im not saying its right, im just saying hes not alone.</div> Sure some of them do, but if no one has ever caught them or there is no proof of them doing it, the argument is null. You nor anyone else knows if Shaq has ever cheated on his wife, so just because you don't like him doesn't mean he actually did. As far as I know there has never been any rumors or accusations of him doing this, so unless you can find any, please don't make up garbage like this that discredits his name. Jordan is a player that its safe to say, cheated on his wife. Shaq isn't. The bottom line is, Kobe got caught cheating, and it's still debateable whether he raped this girl.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting virve119:</div><div class="quote_post">You're right I haven't read it, but I do know the gist of it. Phil Jackson, arguably the greatest coach of all time, couldn't get along with Kobe. He's been quoted as saying Kobe is "childish" and "uncoachable". And he isn't the only one either. Former teammates like Karl Malone (one of the greatest players of all time) and Chucky Atkins both had several problems with Kobe.</div>Isnt Phil coaching Kobe this year? Who he said was uncoachable? Things change. Get over it.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting virve119:</div><div class="quote_post">You're right I haven't read it, but I do know the gist of it. Phil Jackson, arguably the greatest coach of all time, couldn't get along with Kobe. He's been quoted as saying Kobe is "childish" and "uncoachable". And he isn't the only one either. Former teammates like Karl Malone (one of the greatest players of all time) and Chucky Atkins both had several problems with Kobe. Sure some of them do, but if no one has ever caught them or there is no proof of them doing it, the argument is null. You nor anyone else knows if Shaq has ever cheated on his wife, so just because you don't like him doesn't mean he actually did. As far as I know there has never been any rumors or accusations of him doing this, so unless you can find any, please don't make up garbage like this that discredits his name. Jordan is a player that its safe to say, cheated on his wife. Shaq isn't. The bottom line is, Kobe got caught cheating, and it's still debateable whether he raped this girl.</div> Actually there has been a book written about Shaq having extra marital affairs. It's called "Memoirs of a Video Vixen" here's an excerpt from her book... <div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Hip-hop and Hollywood playas are ducking for cover now that everyone's favorite fly girl is telling all. After intensive vetting by lawyers, HarperCollins has gone to press with Karrine Steffans' "Confessions of a Video Vixen." Widely known as "Superhead" (no doubt because of her large cranium), Steffans doesn't hold back when it comes to dishing about her famous lovers. The video-eye-candy-turned-author claims: Shaquille O'Neal "was charmingly self-effacing about his sexual prowess and wanted to reduce my expectations," she writes. But "compared to other men," she assures readers, "he was nothing to complain about." She says that Shaq was so impressed with Steffans that, the day after meeting her, he deposited $10,000 into her bank account.</div> Why is it debateable whether Kobe raped the girl or not? He was proven innocent in a court of law for criminal charges and the civil law suit never took place. It's terrible he cheated on his wife, but she forgave him and that's what should matter. Phil Jackson's book is one side of the story, there's another book coming out in December discreditng a lot of what Phil Jackson wrote. Here's an excerpt from the book ... <div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">PHIL & KOBE TOGETHER AGAIN BY ROLAND LAZENBY EXCERPTED FROM THE FORTHCOMING BOOK, THE SHOW, THE INSIDE STORY OF THE SPECTACULAR LOS ANGELES LAKERS IN THE WORDS OF THOSE WHO LIVED IT, SCHEDULED FOR DECEMBER RELEASE BY MCGRAW-HILL. The telltale signs emerged way back in 1999 when the Los Angeles Lakers hired Phil Jackson for the first time. On the day the Zen Master was to be announced as the team?s new coach, 20-year-old Kobe Bryant slipped in the back door of Jackson?s hotel and made his way up to his room to greet him. In Bryant?s hand was a copy of Jackson?s book Sacred Hoops, which Bryant had read. The Laker guard had long hoped that Jackson would be his coach and months earlier had taken the unusual step of initiating long-distance phone conversations with Jackson?s long-time assistant, Tex Winter. Bryant wasn?t alone in his desire to greet his new coach. Over the coming days, Laker center Shaquille O?Neal would travel to Montana to visit with Jackson at his home on Flathead Lake. Long known as a big kid, O?Neal took an immediate liking to his new coach, to the point of jumping in the lake and playing with the various water toys that belonged to the coach?s own children. Obviously, both players were eager to please their new coach, and to curry favor with him. Headed into his fourth NBAseason, Bryant had long been viewed as the annoying hid on the Laker block, always eager for more work, always ambitious, always running afoul of what his elder teammates thought he ought to be doing. ? The other players on the team wanted to make sure the earned everything he got, that the coach didn?t just give him something just because the fans wanted to see this young phenom play,? recalled Del Harris, Bryant?s first coach with the Lakers. That was especially true of Shaquille O?Neal, the game?s dominant young center who felt immense pressure to win championships. Each season his dislike of Bryant had grown. ?What surprised me about Shaquille during our early days in Los Angeles was how frustrated he got,? said former Lakers GM Jerry West. ?He was not fun to be around. The shortcomings of our team and his teammates made him angry because he knew he was going to be judged on how much we won.? How angry? Just months before Jackson arrived, O?Neal had slapped Bryant during a pickup game at the Laker practice facility. ?It would not be forgotten,? former Laker guard Derek Fisher said of the incident. When Jackson and his coaching staff began work in Los Angeles, they were caught off guard by O?Neal?s level of animosity toward Bryant. ?There was a lot of hatred in his heart,? Tex Winter said of O?Neal. ?he would speak his mind in our team meetings. He was saying really hateful things. Kobe just took it and kept going.? Jackson had long been known for building an outstanding personal relationship with Michael Jordan in Chicago. That had been his strategy from the start: A great relationship with Jordan meant that everyone else on the team would fall in line. Jackson astutely read that he faced a more severe choice in Los Angeles. The situation dictated that he could not be close to both Laker stars. So he made a logical choice, according to Winter. ?Very early in our time in Los Angeles, Phil made the decision to go with Shaq. And he made it clear to Kobe and the press and everyone else that it was Shaq?s team. He made it clear he was far more interested in accommodating Shaq than Kobe. And Kobe seemed to accept this.? Winter, however, began to have concerns immediately. He said he told Jackson that he seemed intent on making Bryant his ?whipping boy,? the player on which the coach traditionally takes out all of his frustration. Winter told Jackson that making a budding young superstar a whipping boy wasn?t a good idea. ?Phil was trying to figure me out a little bit,? Bryant recalled. ?one of things I told him is, ?There?s nothing to figure out. I?m just trying to play the game and learn the game the best I can.? Once we got that established we started moving a little bit. But I didn?t get into his mind games. I had so many other things to think about with this game. I didn?t really have the time even to do that.? Perhaps Bryant should have paid more attention. His relationship with Jackson only worsened over their five years together in Los Angels. Winter said it was made worse by Jackson?s refusal to have any sort of in-depth meeting or relationship with the young guard. At the same time, Jackson leveled a variety of public attacks at Bryant during those years. At one point, Jackson told reporters that Bryant had sabotaged his own high school games to make himself look like a star, a comment that brought howls of protest from Bryant?s high school coach. Despite the situation, Bryant kept his anger under control, Winter said, until the 2003-04 NBA season. It was a contract year for both Bryant and Jackson, and the coach responded with a media campaign to discredit the guard. It culminated with Jackson? book, The Last Season, that depicted Bryant as a selfish and uncoachable player. Jackson had worked behind the secenses several times in not-so-subtle ways to get Bryant traded. But in January 2004, he decided on the direct approach, Jackson went to owner Jerry Buss and told him he could no longer coach the team if Bryant remained. Having witnessed the unfolding behind-the-scenes drama over five years, Lakers owner Jerry Buss told Jackson that was fine; his services would no longer be needed. Stunned, Jackson abruptly changed his approach with Bryant. Suddenly, the coach began trying to have a relationship with Bryant, Winter said. And Bryant responded in kind. ?But it was too late,? Winter said. Buss had made up his mind. Jackson had to go. And the owner had no desire to meet O?Neal?s demands for a lengthy extension on his $30 million plus a year contract. So the Lakers traded him to Miami (where O?Neal would later meekly agree to play for $20 million a season). As he was cleaning out his office, a jilted Jackson did his best to portray Bryant as the villain in the breakup of the team, and soon that perception became the reality, simply because so many people believed it. Jackson made sure of it, phoning reporters as he drove from Los Angeles to his summer home in Montana. He dialed up columnists and radio talk shows to offer his version of events. Sports columnists everywhere who had no idea why the Lakers had fallen apart simply began reporting as fact that Bryant had schemed to make it happen. Despite the blame game Jackson was playing so deftly, he would later admit the truth. Despite all his success in Los Angeles, he had failed in his handling of Bryant. And that was one of several factors in the breakup of a very successful team. ?in the final analysis, it?s the coach?s responsibility to manage the team in the proper manner and not have those things happen,? Winter said. It was simply a huge mistake to not keep Bryant in the loop, Winter said. ?I think Phil realizes that now.? </div>
Shaq is no saint. Just because he isn't having marital problems doesn't make him the greatest guy since Honest Abe. Kobe was very wrong to bring Shaq's name up to the police when he was being interrogated, but why does nobody judge his comments by their context? It's not like he had a microphone on, with the expectation that millions of people would be listening! The dude was scared, probably rambling after hours of dangling-ceiling-light-questioning from detectives, and was trying to act casual. He's not good at casual. We know that. He's an intense, egotistical, Kobe-first kinda guy. But aren't those conversations supposed to be sealed? And what's with the added backlash about Kobe not going to trial, that he got away with something? Let's face it ? obviously the girl who accused him had some very serious emotional issues. I feel bad for her if she believes she was raped; that is absolutely horrible. The fact remains, if there was enough proof or testimony to even frame a possible rape occurrence, that prosecution would not have relented. Everything about this case smacked of the legal system being too rigid to deal with the intricacies of life. Kobe screwed up. Probably more than once. He's a bastard for cheating on his young wife and baby. He's a jerkoff for taking advantage of a star-struck 19-year-old hostess who was probably swept up in the moment by Kobe's three championship rings, until she realized there was a fourth ring to be found. I don't excuse his actions for one minute, and I think he got the public pillory he deserved. Laker fans don't care if Phil Jackson thought he was uncoachable or if Shaquille found his egotistical little basketball brother too much to deal with. Kobe Bryant is still the best basketball player in the world Kobe is smashed into the ropes. And like every fabled American hero, this one is getting up. He's getting up soon. And he's gonna lay a beat down on his opponents that will inspire even the most scornful of detractors. Dump all you want on the man and his actions; the talent is real. Dude is gonna win. A championship. Himself. Soon!
Pretty much what?s been said about Shaq has been said, so there?s not much to say. Shaq caused just as man problems as Kobe has regarding the Lakers. When you live in big market places such as L.A. or N.Y., you?re going to hear whatever the media spills out about them.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting shapecity:</div><div class="quote_post">Actually there has been a book written about Shaq having extra marital affairs. It's called "Memoirs of a Video Vixen" here's an excerpt from her book... Why is it debateable whether Kobe raped the girl or not? He was proven innocent in a court of law for criminal charges and the civil law suit never took place. It's terrible he cheated on his wife, but she forgave him and that's what should matter. Phil Jackson's book is one side of the story, there's another book coming out in December discreditng a lot of what Phil Jackson wrote. Here's an excerpt from the book ...</div> Good read bro!!!!!! I think I need to buy this book.... Hope this can shut some Shaq-wagon fans out there...
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting STAT5:</div><div class="quote_post">Shaq is no saint. Just because he isn't having marital problems doesn't make him the greatest guy since Honest Abe. Kobe was very wrong to bring Shaq's name up to the police when he was being interrogated, but why does nobody judge his comments by their context? It's not like he had a microphone on, with the expectation that millions of people would be listening! The dude was scared, probably rambling after hours of dangling-ceiling-light-questioning from detectives, and was trying to act casual. He's not good at casual. We know that. He's an intense, egotistical, Kobe-first kinda guy. But aren't those conversations supposed to be sealed? And what's with the added backlash about Kobe not going to trial, that he got away with something? Let's face it ? obviously the girl who accused him had some very serious emotional issues. I feel bad for her if she believes she was raped; that is absolutely horrible. The fact remains, if there was enough proof or testimony to even frame a possible rape occurrence, that prosecution would not have relented. Everything about this case smacked of the legal system being too rigid to deal with the intricacies of life. Kobe screwed up. Probably more than once. He's a bastard for cheating on his young wife and baby. He's a jerkoff for taking advantage of a star-struck 19-year-old hostess who was probably swept up in the moment by Kobe's three championship rings, until she realized there was a fourth ring to be found. I don't excuse his actions for one minute, and I think he got the public pillory he deserved. Laker fans don't care if Phil Jackson thought he was uncoachable or if Shaquille found his egotistical little basketball brother too much to deal with. Kobe Bryant is still the best basketball player in the world Kobe is smashed into the ropes. And like every fabled American hero, this one is getting up. He's getting up soon. And he's gonna lay a beat down on his opponents that will inspire even the most scornful of detractors. Dump all you want on the man and his actions; the talent is real. Dude is gonna win. A championship. Himself. Soon!</div> Amen to that homie!!!!!! Amen!!!!!!!!!!!
Honestly Shape, if this article is indeed completely accurate, my perspective is totally changed. I guess Shaq isn't such a loveable funny guy that the media makes him out to be. I also gained some respect for Kobe for taking all that crap without complaining. I still wouldn't blame the breakup on any one player, but I blame Jax and the management for not stepping in and taking control of the situation. I guess the bottom line is that Kobe and Shaq just werent meant to play on the same team. BTW good articles Shape, I don't know where you get all those, I couldn't pick up anything on Shaq cheating when I searched.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting virve119:</div><div class="quote_post">Honestly Shape, if this article is indeed completely accurate, my perspective is totally changed. I guess Shaq isn't such a loveable funny guy that the media makes him out to be. I also gained some respect for Kobe for taking all that crap without complaining. I still wouldn't blame the breakup on any one player, but I blame Jax and the management for not stepping in and taking control of the situation. I guess the bottom line is that Kobe and Shaq just werent meant to play on the same team. BTW good articles Shape, I don't know where you get all those, I couldn't pick up anything on Shaq cheating when I searched.</div> I 've actually seen that article before; the one about Shaq paying that woman to have sex... I think it was Yahoo or something...
<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Well, if that's not the pot calling the kettle ? but I get her point. Steffans didn't have to hang out in the lobby of the W to meet athletes. She didn't have to spend her own money. Her relationships with athletes started in high school, when she began dating Arizona Cardinals players. However, the only present or former athletes specifically mentioned are former Laker John Salley, whom she says set her up on a blind date with Shaquille O'Neal during his bachelor days. When the Big Fella arrived at her house, there was almost no furniture. "My apartment was so empty that Shaq reached into his pocket and gave me a couple of hundred dollars in cash," she said. "The next day, he arranged for $10,000 to be deposited into my bank account. Shaq was very up-front about the way the relationship would be."</div> This is an interview with the Video Vixen, whose real name is Karrine Steffans. What Shaq did was wrong, paid a stranger to have sex with him, and wasn't married to that person obviously. Video Vixen Interview Source
