Are the Lakers invincible?

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If Shaquille O’Neal has no equal, then the Los Angeles Lakers are destined to capture their fourth straight championship in the National Basketball Association (NBA) this season. Or so the Big Aristotle likes to think.

It’s almost as if the 7-1 O’Neal, 30, is Superman in purple and gold. The consensus is as long as Shaq stays healthy, there’s no way the Lakers can be beaten, no matter his free throw percentage.

New Jersey Nets coach Byron Scott, who used to be a Laker, was clueless in looking for a way to stop O’Neal in the Finals last season. O’Neal, with a little help from his friends, particularly Kobe Bryant, powered the Lakers to a 4-0 sweep of the hapless Nets.

"I tried to play him straight up, just dig down on him," said Scott. "But he’s too strong. We tried to double, tried zone. We tried a little of everything and nothing worked. He is that good, the most dominant player in the game. When he throws around that 350 pounds, no one can stop him. Everybody in my era–Bill Russell, Wilt Chamberlain, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar–all these guys had adversaries, somebody that they had to match up against that was just as good as them. Shaq has nobody. There’s nobody in this league that’s close to him, so thinking this guy or that guy is coming along and slow him down, you’re crazy."

Scott, however, isn’t giving up hope. Maybe, Shaq will lose interest in the game. Maybe, he’ll retire to become a full-time rapper. Or maybe, he’ll shift to volleyball and follow in Wilt’s footsteps. Fat chance. Shaq stands to earn about $23 million this year and his contract doesn’t expire until 2006. He just inked a big deal to endorse Starter shoes and apparel–it’s a lot easier making bucks in the NBA than cutting CDs, that’s for sure.

Scott’s reply to Shaq is Dikembe Mutombo whom the Nets plucked out of Philadelphia. But even the lanky Congan is careful not to wag his finger when Shaq comes barreling into his house for a dunk.

"I still think that Shaq is unstoppable," sighed Mutombo who faced off against O’Neal when the Philadelphia lost to the Lakers in a five game Finals two years ago. "When you see someone of his caliber, playing on that level, moving the way he moves, all you can do is take the hat off to him, because he’s a great basketball player and he continues to improve night after night. Many people think that maybe he would slow down but he hasn’t slowed down. That’s all it is."

Last year, O’Neal sat out 15 games, three due to a suspension, and the Lakers lost 24 games in the regular grind. He was bothered by an arthritic toe, a bad wrist and aching ankles. He couldn’t hold down his weight and looked too bulky for comfort. But when the title came up for grabs, Shaq shook off the pain, jiggled his jelly, walked the walk, and took the Lakers back to the throne.

Last Sept. 10, O’Neal underwent surgery to remove bone spurs on both sides of the toe joint in his right foot. The procedure was called cheilectomy. He’ll be out six to eight weeks so the Lakers must make do without Shaq when the season begins.

Coach Phil Jackson made a few adjustments in his lineup to prepare for the coming wars. He tried to bring in Malik Rose from San Antonio, Charles Oakley from Toronto, and Arvidas Sabonis from retirement to back up Shaq. But Jackson was spurned thrice over. Rose stayed with the Spurs. Oakley decided to join Michael Jordan at Washington. Sabonis returned to Portland. So Jackson had to be content in shipping out erratic guard Lindsey Hunter to Toronto for perimeter shooter Tracy Murray and rookie Kareem Rush. The Lakers are testing free agent center Guy Rucker in case of an emergency.

In the offseason, Jackson inked Devean George to a new $18.2 Million four-year contract and signed veteran Brian Shaw to a $1.03 million one-year renewal. Ukrainian Slava Medvedenko inked a two-year extension. Also back on the roster are Rick Fox, Robert Horry, Mark Madsen, Samaki Walker, and Derek Fisher. In all, the Lakers’ payroll will exceed $60 million and owner Jerry Buss must pay a hefty dollar-for-dollar luxury tax over the $50 million threshold.

Bryant is Jackson’s MVP of tomorrow and Shaq’s main caddy. He’s only 24 and the scary thing is he can only get better. Kobe earned $12 Million on his Lakers salary last year and pulled in another $13 million from endorsements. He’s still holding out on a new sneaker deal–he’s not in a hurry. Jordan loyalists refuse to recognize Bryant as the Air Apparent but there’s no denying he’s the closest thing to Mike in the firmament, notwithstanding Vince Carter. What Kobe’s itching for is an MVP trophy-something that Shaq has a habit of collecting. Will he ever get it with O’Neal hanging around?

In the West, the Lakers will be challenged once more by the Sacramento Kings who are convinced they’ve got what it takes to dethrone the champs. The Kings were up over L.A., 3-2, in the Western Conference Finals last year and led by nine in the third period of Game 7 which went into overtime. When it came to crunch time, Vlade Divac fouled out, Doug Christie turned cold, and Chris Webber wouldn’t take the big shot. To make matters worse, Peja Stojakovic was injured.

Sam Smith of the Chicago Tribune said the Kings felt they would’ve faced the Nets in the Finals if not for the 27 Laker free throws in the fourth quarter of Game 6 and their 16 missed charities in Game 7.

O’Neal said he can’t wait to shut up the Sacramento whiners and stuff the ball in Yao Ming’s mouth. "You can’t let the Sacramentos and Yao Mings see that you’re hurting a little bit," he declared. "I’m coming back with a vengeance and determination and I’ll be ready."

If the Lakers survive the Kings or Dallas in the West, they shouldn’t find it difficult to crush whatever opposition comes from the East.

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