Shaquille Rashaun O'Neal, known commonly as Shaq, is an American former professional basketball player who is a sports analyst on the television program Inside the NBA. He is a 7-foot-1-inch (2.16 m) and 325-pound (147 kg) center who played for six teams over his 19-year career in the National Basketball Association (NBA) and is a four-time NBA champion. O'Neal is regarded as one of the greatest basketball players and centers of all time.
Alonzo Harding Mourning Jr. is an American former professional basketball player who has served as vice president of player programs and development for the Miami Heat since June 2009. Mourning played most of his 15-year National Basketball Association (NBA) career for the Heat.
The Bill Russell NBA Finals Most Valuable Player award is an annual National Basketball Association (NBA) award given since the 1969 NBA Finals. The award is decided by a panel of eleven media members, who cast votes after the conclusion of the Finals. The person with the highest number of votes wins the award. The award was originally a black trophy with a gold basketball-shaped sphere at the top, similar to the Larry O'Brien Trophy, until a new trophy was introduced in 2005.
The NBA's Most Improved Player Award (MIP) is an annual National Basketball Association (NBA) award given to the player who has shown the most progress during the regular season compared to previous seasons. The winner is selected by a panel of sportswriters throughout the United States and Canada, each of whom casts a vote for first, second and third place selections. Each first-place vote is worth five points; each second-place vote is worth three points, and each third-place vote is worth one point. The player with the highest point total, regardless of the number of first-place votes, wins the award. The criteria for selecting the most improved player was initially open-ended, but the NBA clarified in later years that it was intended for an up-and-coming player who improved dramatically and not a player who made a comeback, distinguishing it from the defunct NBA Comeback Player of the Year Award. Since the 2022–23 NBA season, winners receive the George Mikan Trophy, named after the five-time NBA champion.
The National Basketball Association All-Star weekend is a weekend festival held every February during the middle of the NBA regular season that consists of a variety of basketball events, exhibitions and performances culminating in the NBA All-Star Game held on Sunday night. No regular season games are held during this period, which is also known as the All-Star break. It is right after the trade deadline.
The 2002 NBA Finals was the National Basketball Association (NBA)'s championship series for the 2001–02 season. The best-of-seven playoff was contested between the Western Conference champion Los Angeles Lakers, and the Eastern Conference champion New Jersey Nets. The Lakers swept the Nets, four games to none, to win the franchise's 14th NBA championship and third consecutive NBA championship. The 56th edition of the championship series was played between June 5 and 12 and was broadcast on NBC — the last NBA games broadcast on the network to date. Lakers coach Phil Jackson won his ninth ring, tying him with Red Auerbach for most all-time. During the series, he surpassed Pat Riley for most career playoffs wins with 156. Shaquille O'Neal of the Lakers was named the NBA Finals Most Valuable Player (MVP) for the third consecutive year, after averaging 36.3 points, 12.3 rebounds and 2.8 blocks per game.
NBA on TNT is an American presentation of National Basketball Association (NBA) games, produced by TNT Sports. In the United States, the TNT cable network has held the rights to broadcast NBA games since 1989, and its telecasts have been streamed on its Max platform since 2023. TNT's NBA coverage includes the Inside the NBA studio show, weekly doubleheaders throughout the regular season on Tuesdays and Thursdays, a majority of games during the first two rounds of the playoffs, and one conference finals series.
Inside the NBA, branded for sponsorship purposes as Inside the NBA presented by Kia, is the postgame studio show for NBA on TNT broadcasts. The show is currently hosted by Ernie Johnson, joined on set by three analysts: Kenny "The Jet" Smith, Charles Barkley and Shaquille O'Neal. Notable former analysts have included Magic Johnson (2003–2007), Reggie Miller (2008–2011), and Chris Webber (2008–2011). By the early 2000s, the show was being consistently rated as among the best sports analysis shows on American television, and over its history has won eighteen Sports Emmy Awards.
The 2009 NBA All-Star Game was an exhibition basketball game that was played on February 15, 2009, during the National Basketball Association's (NBA) 2008–09 season. It was the 58th edition of the NBA All-Star Game, and was played at the US Airways Center in Phoenix, Arizona, home of the Phoenix Suns. The Western Conference defeated the Eastern Conference, 146–119. The West's Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O'Neal were named joint winners of the All-Star Game Most Valuable Player Award. This was the third time that Phoenix had hosted the All-Star Game; the city had previously hosted the event in 1975 and 1995. Phoenix was awarded the All-Star Game in an announcement by commissioner David Stern on November 8, 2007. The other reported contenders for the 2009 contest were Air Canada Centre at Toronto, Madison Square Garden at New York City, Oracle Arena at Oakland and Bradley Center at Milwaukee.
The 1999–2000 NBA season was the Lakers' 52nd season in the National Basketball Association, and 40th season in Los Angeles. It was also the Lakers first season playing in their new arena, the Staples Center, becoming co-tenants with their crosstown rival, the Los Angeles Clippers. During the off-season, the team re-acquired former Lakers forward A.C. Green from the Dallas Mavericks, and signed free agents Ron Harper, Brian Shaw and John Salley. Green won two championships with the Lakers in the 1980s, and Salley won three championships with the Detroit Pistons and the Chicago Bulls. More significantly, the Lakers hired former Bulls coach Phil Jackson, who would go on to help the team win five NBA championships over the course of the next 12 years.
The 2001–02 NBA season was the Lakers' 54th season in the National Basketball Association, and 42nd in the city of Los Angeles. The Lakers entered the season as the two-time defending NBA champions, having defeated the Philadelphia 76ers in five games in the 2001 NBA Finals, winning their thirteenth NBA championship.
The 2001–02 New Jersey Nets season was the Nets' 35th season in the National Basketball Association, and 26th season in East Rutherford, New Jersey. This season is notable for the Nets acquiring All-Star point guard Jason Kidd from the Phoenix Suns during the off-season. The Nets selected Eddie Griffin out of Seton Hall University with the seventh overall pick in the 2001 NBA draft, but soon traded him to the Houston Rockets in exchange for top draft pick Richard Jefferson and rookie center Jason Collins, and signed free agent Todd MacCulloch. The Nets won nine of their first twelve games, held a 26–11 record as of January 16, and held a 32–15 record at the All-Star break. The team finished first place in the Eastern Conference with 52 wins and 30 losses, their best record since joining the NBA after the ABA–NBA merger in 1976. As of 2022, this was the only season where the Nets won 50 or more games.
The NBA All-Star Game Kobe Bryant Most Valuable Player (MVP) is an annual National Basketball Association (NBA) award given to the player(s) voted best of the annual All-Star Game. The award was established in 1953 when NBA officials decided to designate an MVP for each year's game. The league also re-honored players from the previous two All-Star Games. Ed Macauley and Paul Arizin were selected as the 1951 and 1952 MVP winners respectively. The winner is voted upon by a panel of media members, who cast their vote after the conclusion of the game. The fan voting accounts for 25% of the voting. The player(s) with the most votes or ties for the most votes wins the award. In February 2020, Commissioner Adam Silver renamed the NBA All-Star Game Most Valuable Player in honor of four-time winner Kobe Bryant, who died in a helicopter crash a few weeks earlier.
The NBA Awards was an annual awards show presented by the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 2017 to 2019, created in partnership with Turner Sports and produced by Dick Clark Productions to honor and recognize the league's top performers and accomplishments. Finalists for each individual award were announced during the NBA playoffs on NBA on TNT telecasts. Winners were revealed during the ceremony. Additionally, the open public could decide the winner for fan-voted categories online by voting through the league's official website and on social media.
The IBM Award was an award given out to National Basketball Association players from 1984 to 2002. The award was sponsored and calculated by technology company IBM and was determined by a computer formula, which measured a player's statistical contribution to his team. The player with the best contribution to his team in the league received the award. The first recipient was Magic Johnson of the Los Angeles Lakers, and the final recipient was Tim Duncan of the San Antonio Spurs.
Giannis Sina Ugo Antetokounmpo is a Greek-Nigerian professional basketball player for the Milwaukee Bucks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). His country of origin, in addition to his size, speed, and strength have earned him the nickname "Greek Freak". He is widely regarded as one of the greatest power forwards and one of the greatest players of all time.
Shaqtin' a Fool is a weekly segment from the television show Inside the NBA, the postgame show of NBA on TNT following the conclusion of National Basketball Association (NBA) games airing on cable TV channel TNT. The title is a play on "actin' a fool." It first aired during the 2011–12 NBA season, when retired NBA All-Star Shaquille O'Neal voiced it upon joining the show and was created by Turner Sports producer Mike Goldfarb. Shaqtin' highlights humorous and uncommon basketball plays that have occurred during NBA games in the past week. O'Neal is the host and presenter, while the other analysts in studio react and provide commentary. Most often, those have been fellow Inside regulars Ernie Johnson, Kenny Smith, and Charles Barkley, but other Inside hosts have also participated, including Chris Webber, Grant Hill, Steve Smith, Kevin Garnett and Matt Winer. Since 2018, the Shaqtin franchise has been led by Turner Sports producer Michael Kaplan.
The 2019 NBA All-Star Game was an exhibition basketball game that was played on February 17, 2019, during the National Basketball Association's (NBA) 2018–19 season. It was the 68th edition of the NBA All-Star Game, and was played at the Spectrum Center in Charlotte, North Carolina, at the home of the Charlotte Hornets. Team LeBron defeated Team Giannis, 178–164. This was the second time that the NBA All-Star Game format was not Eastern Conference versus Western Conference. Charlotte was announced as host on May 24, 2017. This was the second time that Charlotte hosted the All-Star Game; the first time was in 1991, at the Hornets' previous home arena Charlotte Coliseum.
The 2020 NBA All-Star Game was an exhibition basketball game that was played on February 16, 2020, during the National Basketball Association's (NBA) 2019–20 season. It was the 69th edition of the NBA All-Star Game, and was played at the United Center in Chicago, home of the Chicago Bulls. Team LeBron defeated Team Giannis, 157–155. This was the third time that Chicago hosted the All-Star Game. The other two times, in 1973 and 1988, the game was played at Chicago Stadium, the Bulls' previous home arena. The game was televised nationally by TNT for the 18th consecutive year, and simulcast by TBS for the 6th consecutive year. After airing a “Players Only” broadcast a year ago, TBS returned to simulcasting TNT’s coverage, after the “Players Only” brand was canceled by the NBA and Turner Sports.
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