If this is in the wrong area please lock or move. Scoop Jackson has a new NBA thing (column? sorta?) up on ESPN (http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=jackson/071029&lpos=spotlight&lid=tab3pos2)and thought these parts were interesting: Shaquille O'Neal II (born Nov. 1, 2008) is the new Shaq everyone has been waiting for the past five years. His recent filing for divorce -- and the incidents that led to that filing -- has made Shaquille unhappy, and he's going to take it out on people on the court while he's in court. As bad as the personal disruption in his life might be, it will allow him to use basketball as a getaway, a release, a solace, and take the pressure off him being the dalai lama of professional sports. For years the old Shaq has tried to be the nicest, most serene guy on the planet. This year he needs to take a break: break a few backboards, break a few records, break Yao, and let the basketball world know that 35 is the new 30. The Sporting News already rated him as the 20th best center(!) in their fantasy league. If that isn't enough to rile up the old Shaq and give him a reason for a rebirth, nothing will be. Texas (the state that occupies damn-near the entire Southwest region of the United States, the state with the city that is best-kept secret in the country [Austin], the state that has the best basketball on the planet) is about to have the best NBA/interstate battle it's ever had. All three Texas teams -- the Spurs, Rockets and Mavericks -- have something to prove. Houston has to prove what happened to the Rockets last year was a fluke, Dallas has to prove what happened to the Mavs last year was really a fluke, and San Antonio has to prove that what happened to the Spurs last year wasn't a fluke. In order to win an NBA ring, a team will have to go through this state. The difficulty is great -- like beating both Williams sisters in the same tennis tournament, or having to win 15 of your final 16 games just to make it into the postseason.
