LOS ANGELES, 17 February 2004 — Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant produced dominant performances in front of their hometown fans to lead the Western Conference to a 136-132 victory over the Eastern Conference in the All-Star Game on Sunday.
“Shaq played one of those inspired, forceful games that makes him the pre-eminent player in our league,” East coach Rick Carlisle told reporters after the Los Angeles Lakers center led all scorers with 24 points to land the Most Valuable Player award. O’Neal looked completely at home in front of his own Los Angeles fans, even borrowing a photographer’s camera to take his own picture at one point.
Lakers teammate Bryant also had a strong game and was the second top scorer with 20 points.
“He had an incredible game, running the floor, getting second-change opportunities, taking pictures of himself. It was showtime, man,” Bryant said of O’Neal.
O’Neal even took the ball the whole length of the court before dunking it, with no one wanting to get in the way of the 7-foot-1, 340-pound player. “I’ve only seen one guy take charge of Shaq when he was coming full speed down the court like that. It was Travis Best five years ago,” said Carlisle.
“He took a charge around the three-point line and he slid all the way and hit the stanchion on the floor.”
The East was led by New Orleans center Jamaal Magloire with 19 points and New Jersey forward Kenyon Martin with 17 points.
“Jamaal Magloire played great. He came out aggressive, he was hitting shots, he gave us a real presence around the basket, particularly in the first half,” Carlisle said. The halftime show featured Grammy award-winning singer Beyonce Knowles and was broadcast with a 10-second tape delay by cable network TNT in the US following Janet Jackson’s breast-baring antics at the Super Bowl.
A spokesman for TNT said the network did not edit any of the halftime show. CBS, which televised the Super Bowl, faces the prospect of regulatory sanctions over its broadcast.
O’Neal Takes MVP Honors in All-Star Show
Shaquille O’Neal had a simple goal for the NBA All-Star Game — come off the bench and have some fun.
After a rim-rocking, Frankenstein-walking performance that brought his hometown crowd to its feet, he also ended up with a game-leading 24 points and the Most Valuable Player trophy Sunday.
“I’m not really one to be taking over an All-Star Game,” Lakers center O’Neal said with uncharacteristic understatement.
“I just wanted to come out and have a good time. I said to myself, if it’s going good, (if) nobody is really shining, I’m going to go ahead and go for it.”
O’Neal helped the Western Conference to a 136-132 victory over the Eastern Conference. In one of the game’s most memorable moments, the seven-foot, one-inch O’Neal ran the ball from one end of the court to the other in a second-half display of brute force basketball that sent defender and New Jersey Nets point guard Jason Kidd scurrying away.
“I didn’t move just a little bit. I moved all the way out of the way,” said Kidd, who took charge of the Eastern Conference’s fast-break game in the losing effort. “You’ve got to think of your family.”
