LOS ANGELES, 30 October 2004 — Alonzo Mourning made a triumphant return with 12 points and five rebounds in 19 minutes, helping the host New Jersey Nets to a 96-94 pre-season victory over the Philadelphia 76ers on Thursday night.

Mourning put in an outstanding effort in his first outing since undergoing a kidney transplant last December after being diagnosed with focal segmental glomerulosclerosis in 2000.

“I have been playing this game for over 20 years,” Mourning said afterward. “It’s just like riding a bike, you never forget. If you haven’t ridden one in three years, they throw one in front of you, you know what to do with it.”

Mourning was diagnosed with the disease, and played in just 13 games during the 2001-02 season, before being forced to sit out the entire 2002-03 campaign.

The Nets signed Mourning to a four-year $22 million contract prior to the 2003-04 season. His illness, however, forced the seven-time all-star centre to end his season on Nov. 25 after only a dozen contests. On Dec. 19, he underwent a kidney transplant with an organ donated by his cousin. Mourning was expected to look rusty but the 12-year veteran handled himself well before fouling out midway through the fourth quarter.

“As far as my overall conditioning, it does need to be a little better,” Mourning explained. “At the same time, I think my recovery is doing a lot better because I have a new organ that is doing its job. That makes a world of difference.” Nets coach Lawrence Frank gave Mourning high marks for his remarkable effort. “For the first game after not having played, after coming off a kidney transplant, phenomenal,” Frank said. “This guy had a kidney transplant and you could see him working hard, and the energy he gave.” Mourning is hoping to play this season unless doctors advise him to stop because his body rejects the new kidney. “All I can do is take this one day at a time,” Mourning said. “I can’t predict what’s going to happen.”

Shaq and Kobe Eager to Show Who

is the Better Team Leader

Meanwhile, Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal, unable to set aside their differences in Los Angeles, will now be facing new challenges with teams on either side of the continent. The NBA superstars will be eager to show who is the better team leader as for the first time in nine years the former Laker teammates will not even compete in the same conference.

Former Laker coach Phil Jackson added fuel to Shaq-Kobe rivalry when he came out earlier this month with his tell-all book “The Last Season”. Jackson painted Bryant as a selfish player who undercut the coach’s authority and tried to drive a wedge between the players in the locker room. Jackson’s book revealed the extent of the bitterness between Bryant and O’Neal, who ended up being shipped to the Miami Heat in the off-season.

The trade set the stage for what has become the most anticipated game of the NBA season on Dec. 25 when the Bryant’s Lakers face the Heat in Los Angeles. For eight years O’Neal and Bryant combined to become the most feared duo in the NBA, leading the Lakers to three consecutive championships (2000-2002).

Most NBA watchers feel O’Neal will have an easier time getting used to his new surroundings and teammates in Miami than Bryant will have in adjusting to life on the court without the giant center.

O’Neal, considered one of the most dominant inside players in history, has a new perimeter sidekick in Dwyane Wade, who averaged 16.1 points per game in his first season last year.

Indiana Pacers coach Rick Carlisle says the 22-year-old Wade could play a similar role to what Bryant played with O’Neal. “It looks like it could be another Kobe-Shaq type of situation,” Carlisle said.