Shaquille O’Neal appears to be one of the many analysts who are determined to ridicule the LA Lakers’ In-Season Championship banner that they hoisted on December 18. A Lakers legend himself, Shaq was on NBA on TNT when his fellow analysts wanted him to comment on the new Championship banner. However, he immediately seemed to have an issue with it, and completely dismissed the idea that the Lakers had, in fact, raised a ‘banner’.
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The legendary LA franchise has won 17 NBA championships in its illustrious history, with O’Neal himself being involved in 3 title runs. However, Shaq claimed that while the other banners were real, the In-Season banner was simply a decoration. “Well, there is a loophole there. We look at the real banners with a certain color. This is just an ornament,” he stated.
While his fellow co-hosts Kenny Smith and Ernie Johnson accepted it as a bona fide banner, the big man refused to, declaring its different color to be a legitimate reason to disregard its claim to being a ‘banner’ completely.
“No no, it’s not a banner coz it doesn’t look like the other banners. For example, I can’t put this stuff on this thing [putting a piece of gift wrap over a coffee cup] and call it a Christmas tree. All the other original banners are gold. This is just an ornament. They won the In-Season Championship. It’s not a banner. It’s a decoration,” Shaq reiterated.
The big fella’s explanation brought forth mild ridicule from the others, who claimed that Lakers themselves were calling it a banner. Ernie Johnson noted that even the Lakers’ PA called it a banner while hoisting it.
Shaq however, had a hilarious response, and stood firm with his take. “Well guess what, the PA gonna be working for the Weather Channel next week. It is not a banner. Show it again,” he added.
The response was followed by a characteristic declaration of his own status. O’Neal claimed that he knew exactly what he was talking about, simply because he himself ‘got three of them,” referring to the three Championships and Finals MVPs that he won during his time at the franchise.
LA Lakers themselves seem delighted with their In-Season championship
There is little doubt that LeBron James and company have had to suffer a bit of ridicule for the way they have celebrated their In-Season tournament win. James, who was the MVP, was spotted popping champagne on the occasion.
That, in and of itself, was an act Charles Barkley explicitly had a problem with, claiming that winning the tournament, especially for the Lakers, was not that huge of an achievement and didn’t warrant such celebrations. The Lakers, however, seemed adamant.
Alex Fudge recently revealed that LeBron had dedicated the In-Season tournament victory to the team’s youngsters, as per Sports Illustrated. Fudge claimed that James had seemed confident in the build-up to the Final, with D’Moi Hodge also revealing that he wanted to win the tournament for the team’s rookies. That, of course, is understandable, considering how the $500k payout is particularly useful for the team’s younger players, but not for the established stars who already get paid in millions.
