He packed up and headed West for L.A. after pointing the finger at numerous people in the organization. Citing his unhappiness with teammates Nick Anderson, and Penny Hardaway as fuel for the fire, Shaq was history. Which brings us to now. Last year Kobe Bryant played the back seat to Shaquille while giving the NBA a peek at his potential. Kobe hasn t turned back.
Lets take a shorter trip down memory lane.
A trip to last year when the Lakers were in danger of not even reaching the finals courtesy of a talented Portland Trailblazer team. In that final game, Kobe dominated, he was the man. Playing defense, draining crucial shots, and stepping back shooting the three. After all, it was Kobe doing Shaq s job of guarding Arvydas Sabonis in the final seconds. Lets not forget that it was Kobe who blocked Sabonis s shot to end the Trailblazers hopes of a trip to the finals and completing the Laker come back.