In the early hours of June 4th, the Los Angeles Lakers ' private plane was flying smoothly over the United States.
The cabin was dimly lit, and most of the players had already put on eye masks and fallen asleep. Only a reading light in the middle of the cabin was still on.
Shaquille O'Neal O'Neal's massive frame sank into the widened seat. He wasn't asleep, clutching a copy of the Los Angeles Times he'd bought at the airport before takeoff.
The sports headlines didn't offer much praise for the Lakers' run out of the Western Conference; instead, they took a detached approach, revisiting last summer's blockbuster trade that shocked the league.
The columnist wrote, "A year ago, the Lakers' management made the most reckless gamble in team history. They traded away Kobe Brian and others, acquiring Jason Kidd, Lamar Odom, and Sean Marion, attempting to build a completely new system around Shaq. But this system struggled in the quagmire of the Western Conference. If they fail again in Boston this year, Shaq will not only lose the championship but also definitively confirm the fatalism he hates most. He is simply the Wilt Chamberlain Wilt Chamberlain of this era, a tragic giant with unparalleled individual statistics, yet forever unable to overcome the Mountain of Boston."
O'Neal stared blankly at the words " Wilt Chamberlain Wilt Chamberlain," his large thumb unconsciously rubbing the paper, crumpling the edges slightly.
He had an extremely high sense of pride. This was the lineup he wanted; he longed to prove that even after getting rid of that stubborn young guard, he could still be the absolute cornerstone and win everything, to be on par with winners like Beal Russell. But now, his pride was locked in a fierce struggle with a body on the verge of collapse. The throbbing pain in his right big toe was a cruel reminder that he might not be able to deliver on his promise, and was even destined to repeat the tragedy of his predecessors.
In his first-class seat, Phil Jackson was also wide awake. He sat across the aisle, quietly reading the newspaper in O'Neal's hand.
As head coach, Jackson understood the chain reaction that trade would have better than anyone. Kidd's playmaking, Odom's facilitation, and Marion's fast breaks did indeed allow the Lakers to unleash a dazzling, fluid offense in the regular season. The team became extremely "rational."
But it is precisely because it is too "reasonable" that it has led to the current desperate situation.
In the intense physical battles of the playoffs, when plays fell apart and the opponent's forwards shut down all passing lanes, Jackson inevitably thought of Kobe.
If that young man in the number 8 jersey were still around, facing Dallas's impenetrable defense, he wouldn't even consider the optimal passing vision. He would simply use an almost pathological obsession to forcefully pull up for shots over the defender's block, throwing those extremely unreasonable balls into the basket.
It's a savage "hard-break" ability that exists outside of the tactical system.
The Lakers have lost that ability. Kidd is always looking for the most reasonable passing route, and when that route is blocked, the ball can only be lobbed to O'Neal in the paint for him to drive to the basket. This is precisely the root cause of O'Neal's premature exhaustion. When the tactics fail, he is forced to bear the entire weight of the team's offensive burden.
The pain of losing Kobe was masked by the team's impressive regular season record, but the exhaustion on the eve of the NBA Finals brought the true reckoning.
Jackson looked away; the coffee beside him had gone cold.
At that moment, the Los Angeles Lakers ' head physical therapist, Gary Vitti, sat down opposite Jackson with a medical report in hand.
"Go ahead and say it." Jackson rubbed his temples, trying to banish the image of Kobe from his mind.
" Shaq's right big toe has suffered a complete deterioration of arthritis and bone spurs. Coupled with the complication of plantar fasciitis, he now experiences intense stinging pain with every step he takes." Vitti's voice was tinged with exhaustion.
Jackson frowned slightly. He knew that after the defeat in Boston last year, this big man, who usually indulged himself in the summer, had actually been secretly working harder. Shaq had been strictly controlling his diet all season, and even lost a lot of weight when he reported for training camp, wanting to achieve revenge with better mobility and stamina.
"That's the most frustrating part, Phil," Vitti said in a low voice, sensing the coach's thoughts. " Shaq has indeed tried to lose weight this year, but for a center of his caliber, his bones and muscles have long since adapted to his previous massive size. Losing weight has deprived him of the natural cushioning provided by his original fat layer, resulting in severe compensatory soreness in his back and lumbar spine when he battles Mutombo in the low post. For the past two weeks, he's actually been in a state of constant soreness."
Vitti gave a wry smile and continued flipping through the report, "But if he doesn't lose weight, carrying that massive weight to cope with the high-intensity shuttle runs in Dallas, his arches and toes would have been completely crushed by his enormous body weight long ago."
"Losing weight will cause him to experience muscle aches and pains throughout his body, and reduce his dominance in the paint. Maintaining his weight will lead to problems with his lower limbs." Vitti closed the report. "He's actually been stuck in this unsolvable physiological dilemma, caught between a rock and a hard place."
Jackson remained silent and did not interrupt.
"During halftime of the Game 7, I had to forcibly drain the fluid from his joint cavity and give him the maximum dose of anti-inflammatory medication to get him through the second half," Vitti added.
Jackson's fingers paused on the table for a moment. "What about tomorrow?"
"He refused the cortisone injection," Vitti said with some helplessness. "After he lands tomorrow, I'll have to continue draining the fluid and then install custom-made rigid carbon fiber pads in his boots. This will forcibly stabilize his toe joints, preventing the excruciating pain from bending them. But this also means his second jump speed and explosiveness will drop significantly. He'll have to have foot surgery this summer."
Where is Jason?
"Synovitis in both knees." Vitti turned a page of the report. " The Western Conference's full-court defense forced him to make too many extreme stops and changes of direction. His knees are now lacking lubrication and are severely worn."
Jackson silently turned his head and looked towards the back of the cabin. O'Neal was curled up in the widened seat, breathing heavily.
Last summer, in order to counter Boston's interior defense, the Lakers acquired Kidd, Odom, and Marion. Jackson firmly believed that this lineup was the best weapon to overthrow Boston.
But Boston's president, Lin Qi, sent defensive stalwarts like Mutombo to the Western Conference, using the most primitive, grueling tactics to completely exhaust the Lakers ' stamina...
" Gary," Jackson's voice was a little hoarse, "After we land tomorrow, drain the fluid from Shaq's engorgement."