I watched the highlights of the game this morning. I could not believe how quick he still is on the block. That spin move past Robinson (who has probably lost 3 steps at this point) was amazing. Then his later jump hook through the lane. The guy is just a sensational athlete, especially at his size. I agree, he would have had a great career no matter what because his feet are just too fast.

I was a little worried yesterday when you weren't back yet and all the notices saying you were on vacation were taken down. Glad to have you here again.

The shrinking screen is getting to be an irritant on t.v. in general, not just on TNT. They're becoming like the annoying vendors at a sports event who block critical action.

MLS and international soccer have it figured out--run a bug with a score and sponsor's logo in the upper left of the screen. But don't cover any sports action with anything short of a true emergency, such as a weather alert.

King,

Collins is OK, but I wish that Marv Albert and Steve Kerr were doing the games in the West. I think they are the best team by far. Collins and Harlan are OK, especially after you watch a game on ABC with Mike Tirico, Bill Walton and Steve Jones.

Collins made several basic errors though...he called the Clippers "Lakers" at least twice, he mixed up Tim and Kurt Thomas, and he miscalculated the point lead. The last two are no big deal, but it has taken the Clippers long enough to get here, and are much beter than the Lakers. They don't need to be insulted!

Steve

Isn't that what made Chris Kaman shove Reggie Evans?

Shaq's adjustment wasn't anything unusual. King's probably right that he would have adjusted his style early on in his career if things hadn't been called his way -- but every player has to make that sort of adjustment in his rookie season. Allen Iverson's crossover was a deadly weapon until the league came to a consensus about how to call the thing, and then Iverson adjusted. Some players can't adjust for one reason or another -- that's always been the question about Shaq, and there are plenty of examples of people like Theo Ratliff, whose constant sting of ticky-tack touch fouls has seriously eaten into his career.

In every individual game, players start out feeling their ways to see how the refs will be calling this one. Similarly, watching any game of baseball, you can see pitchers and batters reading tonight's umpire in the early innings, wondering whether the outside corner will go to the pitcher or the batter, and so on.

This stuff happens every day, at every level.

I agree, less of Doug Collins' whining is a good thing. His Bill Parcells-inspired choice of hair color, a bad thing. Billy Idol called, he wants his peroxide back.

As with O'Neal, refs often allow Lebron James to lower his shoulder into the chests of defenders and actively smash them backward, which is a foul. And as with O'Neal, playoff refs last week for a game started calling charges on James. But James and Mike Brown got whiny on the off day, and the charging calls stopped. It's a shame, because the game would be better off if neither James nor O'Neal nor anybody else was allowed to do this. I know it barely raises eyebrows anymore, but the game seemed so much better when James had to actually play basketball when he had the ball.

(Maybe if we get this one, the next quixotic quest can be for allowing no more than four steps without dribbling, instead of the current--what is it, like six now?)

There has been a blizzard of comments and articles about the Shaq/Kobe relationship, about the calling of fouls on Shaq, etc. I read a more than average amount of sports news but have never seen an extended or serious discussion of how Shaq's workout program, especially in the off season.

Let's say that, for what I can gleen from the crumbs of comment about his training regime(?), I can safely assume that he is not one of Roger Clemons's "workout warroior" buddies. Will someone do me the favor of explaining what is really going on? Is this some sort of cover-up? I just saw a picture of him playing for Orlando and I was stunned. It looked like a picture of Barry Bonds (only taller) playing for the Pirates.

Collins is OK, but I wish that Marv Albert and Steve Kerr were doing the games in the West.

I agree Albert and Kerr are the best team going.

I know it's too much to ask people to remember things that happened even last year, but this is exactly the same debate that was going on when Wilt Chamberlain came in the league, Wilt being much bigger and stronger than anyone else in the league at the time. (I'm only in my 40s and I remember that discussion). The solution by the refs then was much the same as it is now: let Wilt move guys bodily out of the way, but allow him to be hacked unmercifully. So everything old is new again.

All true about Shaq and his freedom to just blast through any defender. But I think it started about 1980 with Moses Malone of the Rockets, who was the first player I remember who just knocked players out of the way and wasn't called for fouls.

Define "big man" to mean any player taller than 6' 10" tall. The term "big men" means the general class of persons each of whom is a "big man." The following rules should apply to big men to eliminate their unfair advantage in basketball.

On offense:

1) No shots allowed inside the 3-point line

2) Normal shots beyond 3-point line count for only 2 points

3) Shots from beyond half court count for 3 points.

4) No offensive rebounds allowed by big men

5) Assists allowed by big men only if they are standing inside the lane when the pass is made

6) Big men will not shoot free throws -- they cannot make them anyway so it just delays the game

7) Big men cannot pass the ball from out-of-bounds when their team takes possession after an opponent's basket or infraction, however, they are allowed to catch the inbounds pass and dribble the ball up-court.

8) Penalty for big men violating any of the above rules is a technical foul.

On defense:

1) Cannot be standing "in-bounds"

2) Therefore, cannot legally rebound or block shots or intercept passes on defense.

3) Penalty for attempting to rebound or block shots or intercept passes on defense will be a technical foul.

4) Any contact between a big man and an opposing player who possesses the ball will be a foul on the big man.

These new rules will make the game more enjoyable for everyone.