The Sports JayJC: The Tale of Two that knew only how to Win

There once existed a dynamic tandem in the NBA known as the Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen. Even though Pippen mostly lived under the shadows of the G.O.A.T. himself, together, they triumphed over the entire NBA by leading the Chicago Bulls to six world championships. ('91,'92,'93,'96,'97,'98) Now that's a lot of rings. These two were the reason some of the NBA's all time greats never got to know what if felt like to win an NBA title. (Sir Charles, The Mailman Karl Malone, John Stockton, Shawn Kemp, Patrick Ewing, and more). Arguably the best duo ever in the NBA? Some would say. I beg to differ.

The once skinny and explosive young Junior out of LSU first made his appearance in the NBA in the fall of 1992 as he was picked #1 overall in the 1992 NBA draft by the Orlando Magic. Shaquille O'Neal made an impact from the start of his career as he led the Magic to 20 more wins than the prior season and earned the accolade of "rookie of the year". He quickly became one of the most dominant big men in the league and was feared by many.

While O'Neal continued to dominate the NBA as a young star, a young boy who was named after a famous Japanese steak, was ruling the nation as the #1 high school basketball player. The skinny 6'6" guard ran up and down the court scoring left and right, blocking shots and stealing the ball from whoever faced him. Whenever the #33 was called to do work on the hardwood, the opposing high school teams would tremble in fear. There were of course a few high school hot shots that thought they could stop this basketball protege but all either fell short or left dropped their heads down, full of embarrassment. The 17 year old senior found himself in Madison Square Garden for draft day, just a few weeks after his graduation. The Hornets took him at the 13th overall pick and Kobe Bryant's journey began.

After the '95-'96 season, O'Neal joined the Los Angeles Lakers. When draft day came and Bryant was drafted, destiny came to its calling as the young rookie was quickly traded to the Lakers. As the four year center first shook hands with his fresh new teammate out of high school, they both had a look of confidence as they looked forward to being a part of the historical Lakers, who were looking for a new answer to the upcoming prospective dynasty. Little did the two young men know... THEY were the answer.

For the first three seasons, times were rough as O'Neal dealt with injuries and little Kobe lived the life of a backup for the first time. By the third campaign together, Kobe was a starter and the Lakers went on to compete in the playoffs once again. The result was the same as they were swept in the Western Conference semi-finals by the San Antonio Spurs and once again failed to make the NBA finals. The team had everything it needed to compete for a world championship; a young star on the rise in Kobe Bryant, one of the most dominant big men to ever come into the NBA, veteran forwards in Rick Fox Robert Horry and Glen Rice. It seemed as if the Lakers were just not meant to win like they used to in the glory days of Magic, Kareem, Wilt, and co. Then the basketball Gods answers. Phil Jackson, former coach of Michael Jordan AND Scottie Pippen's Chicago Bulls took over has head coach of the Lakers. "The stars in the sky aligned" as Phil Jackson moved on from the ultimate duo that he once created to possibly create another one.

As a new era was to begin for the Lakers, the "Zen Master" Phil Jackson, mentored and guided Shaq and Kobe as he formed them into a guard center combo that would be unstoppable. The triangle offense that won Coach Jackson six championships at Chicago utilized the same strategy with the Lakers. It didn't take long as the Lakers reached the finals and dropped Reggie Miller and the Pacers in six games. Shaq was awarded as finals MVP and the dynasty began. The following two years were not much different as the Lakers cruised through the regular season and advanced to the finals, defeating the 76ers and Nets respectively as O'Neal solidified two more MVP awards. The Lakers had won three in a row and all looked well as the dynasty looked like it couldn't go anywhere but up.

The fantasy ended as the Spurs slapped the Lakers back into reality by out performing them in the Western Conference semi-finals. The duo looked to make a return to the finals the following year as the Lakers picked up two future hall of famers in Gary Payton and Karl Malone. Yeah, they reached the finals. No, they didn't win.

Frustration rose in the locker room and team chemistry was falling apart like wet toilet paper. The following off season, Coach Phil Jackson's contract was not renewed and O'Neal was sent off to the Miami Heat in return for Lamar Odom, Caron Butler, and Brian Grant. The "dynamic duo" was split up and the legendary coach was gone.

As hatred was built between Kobe and Shaq throughout the media, the once feared tandem was now a rivalry.

Some say that if these two were still together, they could have won three or more titles on top of the three they had already won. Of course we wouldn't be able to justify that but it is definitely a strong argument. Kobe has only gotten better since the time of their partnership and Shaq has shown that he is not going to let age slow him down. At least not yet. Shaq and Kobe, who had recently said that their was no hatred between them, that it was "all a show", came out and put on a show last night as the two suited up together once again for the Western All-Stars in Phoenix for the 2009 All-Star game. It has been a long time since the two superstars played with the same name on the front of their jerseys but nothing seemed to have changed over the treacherous time period as Kobe lit the floor with 27 points and Shaq showed signs of his old self as he dominated the paint. The two played in sync and ended up being co-MVP's for the game.

Beautiful isn't it?

Time is of the essence now and as Kobe reaches the milestone age of 30, Shaq is nearing the end of his NBA time line. Who'd like to see these two go at it in the same purple and yellow jersey under Coach Phil again? I would I would! Now I'm not saying this is going to happen and of course they won't be the same tandem as they were before. Maybe better, worse? Who knows? Whatever the case is, I can assure you that if these two joined forces for just one season, the tandem would prove to the world that they are the greatest pair to ever play in the NBA.