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NBA ALL-STAR WEEKENDFebruary 15, 2009Kobe BryantShaquille O'NealPHOENIX, ARIZONA Q. Kobe, you are well aware of Shaq's playful side. Was tonight above and beyond? KOBE BRYANT: No, it is nothing I haven't seen before. Am I right? SHAQUILLE O'NEAL: Yeah. KOBE BRYANT: I have seen it all before. (Smiling). It is still fun, though. Q. Kobe, first of all, you were extremely aggressive especially for an All-Star Game in the first quarter. Was that your intent? KOBE BRYANT: We wanted to be aggressive. We talked about it before going out there, we wanted to play. We lost last year and we wanted to make sure we came out here and played the game hard, come out here with a win. Q. Shaq, can you talk a little bit about your dance moves? SHAQUILLE O'NEAL: I wanted to do something a little different and unique. They are the best dance crew out there, just wanted to be different. I realized that this may possibly be my last one, so I wanted to make it memorable for myself and for the fans. Q. Kobe, I know you are not exactly the sentimental type, but when you guys are having the interaction on the court, does it feel like old times? Does it make you as all wishful for being able to play with Shaq, having those moments? KOBE BRYANT: No. (Laughter). SHAQUILLE O'NEAL: No. (Laughter). Q. Not even a little? KOBE BRYANT: It was fun for us to interact with that. It is just fun. We are just having fun. In terms of being nostalgic -- SHAQUILLE O'NEAL: It felt like old times. I miss those times. He was really looking for me, especially when we went to a pick-and-roll and they had Rashard Lewis on me. He was really looking for me. KOBE BRYANT: We are not going to go back to the room and watch "Steel Magnolias" or something like that, you know what I'm saying, crying, all that stuff. We had a good time. That's all. (Smiling). Q. It has been a long time, but it is okay to be nostalgic, Kobe, you know that? KOBE BRYANT: It is perfectly fine. Nothing wrong with being nostalgic. It is not necessarily my cup of tea. Q. Shaquille, great -- your teammate over here, what he did today and, Kobe, can you grade Shaq on what he did on and off the dance floor? SHAQUILLE O'NEAL: I will let you go first. KOBE BRYANT: On the dance floor, it was an A-plus. SHAQUILLE O'NEAL: Huh? KOBE BRYANT: A-plus on the dance floor. SHAQUILLE O'NEAL: I appreciate that. KOBE BRYANT: That size moving and all that. He didn't show you the windmill. SHAQUILLE O'NEAL: No, can't. KOBE BRYANT: Well, he can windmill too. On the court he obviously played extremely well, running the floor. I was disappointed with his wing isolation. I thought he would put it between his legs and cross over and do all that stuff. I will give it an A. I leave out the plus, but I give it an A. SHAQUILLE O'NEAL: Kobe is the best player in the league. He has been the best player in the league, so A-plus on that side. And A-plus for being a great guy. He even let me take the trophy home today for my boys, so I appreciate him for that. Two A-pluses. KOBE BRYANT: One day? SHAQUILLE O'NEAL: No. Q. How many days do you get it? SHAQUILLE O'NEAL: He said I could have it. I appreciate that. Q. Terry Porter apparently is out as coach and Alvin Gentry will take over tomorrow. Your thoughts and reaction? SHAQUILLE O'NEAL: I haven't heard that yet, so I don't think I should comment on that. Of course I read it in the paper and of course I heard you guys say it, but I haven't got a call from Steve or Robert yet. So I'm just going to chill out on that question. Q. Shaq, at one point you got past Paul Pierce and looked like you were ready to do something and he fouled you and you kind of glared at him a little bit. SHAQUILLE O'NEAL: I was getting ready to do a Vince Carter wrong-way windmill like he did in the 2000 Dunk Contest (laughter). KOBE BRYANT: And then he woke up. SHAQUILLE O'NEAL: I was getting ready to windmill that thing. Q. Preview thought, Kobe, for upcoming week and your expectations of the unofficial second half of the season for you guys? KOBE BRYANT: We got a tough week coming up. We got Atlanta, going back to back up against Golden State which is always tough. We hit the ground off and running. It was a fun weekend. As soon as I leave this podium, it is time to get back down to business (ground). Looking forward to it. End of FastScripts |
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