Kupchak says O'Neal trade request is a joke?

[Evilmav2]

Laker GM says O'Neal may be kidding about trade demand
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Los Angeles GM Mitch Kupchak said Shaquille O'Neal might have just been kidding when he requested the Lakers trade him to a team that is serious about winning another NBA title.

"Shaq likes to kid and it is hard to tell sometimes whether he is kidding or not kidding. I was disappointed he said it publicly. That is the kind of thing that should be done in private," Kupchak said.

The giant centre asked for a trade after the Lakers decided not to invite coach Phil Jackson back for a sixth season and said he was tradeable if the right deal came along.

"I want you guys to write that if any GM out there wants a hard-working big man who wants to win championships, call Mitch Kupchak because he'll entertain offers," O'Neal said on Friday.

Superstar Kobe Bryant, who O'Neal has feuded with on and off over the years, exercised a contract clause on Friday that allowed him to become an unrestricted free agent.

O'Neal has two years and more than 58 million dollars left on his contract but he is unhappy with the current direction of the team and says if the Lakers want to get rid of him then he is willing to go.

"The direction they're going in, if they're going to continue to go in the same direction, I don't want to be a part of this," O'Neal told the Los Angeles newspapers. "This team, it ain't about me, it ain't about Phil. It's supposed to be about the team.

"When I was brought here by Jerry West, there was a team concept. It was something I wanted to be a part of. I told you I'm all about winning championships. Now the organization is different."

Kupchak initially said he would will try to satisfy O'Neal's trade request but ruled out a sign-and-trade deal involving Bryant before the 25-year-old opted to become a free agent.

The Lakers season ended with a whimper last week when they were beaten 100-87 in the series-clinching game five of the NBA finals.

If he is dealt to another club, O'Neal's final game with the Lakers was last Tuesday's loss to the underdog Pistons, who beat a team with a roster boasting four future Hall of Famers.

[Poindexter Einstein]

Kupchak makes no sense. Last week he says Shaq asked for a trade and the Lakers will honor the request. Then he turns around and says Shaq might have been joking? If he thnks its a joke, why did he publicly agree to do it?

This looks like posturing to me. Is he trying to angle Shaq into dropping the no trade provision to "prove" it's a serious request?

And what about Kobe?

If they want Shaq why did they stiff him on an extension?

Is Kupchak trying to soldify Shaq as the "bad guy" in all of this, as the instigator, so that the Lakers can position themselves as innocent victims in the eyes of their fans?

This is the old "Drama in LA" stuff, now up to about Chapter 78.

[Evilmav2]

Management wants Shaq to cool off

By Ross Siler , Staff Writer
Pasdena Star News

Only seven days have passed since the Lakers were eliminated from the NBA Finals, but time enough for Phil Jackson and the team to part ways, for Kobe Bryant to opt out of his contract and for Shaquille O'Neal to make trade demands to reporters.
But not enough time for Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak to decide what to do with O'Neal. For now, Kupchak hopes some distance from the season and, possibly, the hiring of a new coach will be enough to bring the big man back to the Lakers' fold.

Kupchak said Monday he had not spoken with O'Neal or his representatives in the past week and suggested that O'Neal's comments Friday about wanting out of Los Angeles might have come in the heat of the moment.

On Friday, O'Neal pointedly said: "So I want you guys to write that if any GM out there wants a hard-working big man who wants to win championships, call Mitch Kupchak because he'll entertain offers.'

To which Kupchak responded Monday: "It's certainly not something that should be played out publicly; I don't think I'm out of line by saying that. Yet we've all been around Shaquille for a bunch of years now and he kind of wears his emotions on his sleeves.

"And he says the first thing that comes to his mind. And sometimes, it's with thought and sometimes it's not. I would say most of the time it is.

"But that's just the way he is. In the past, he's commented about me, he's commented about our coach. And some comments are good, some aren't good. So it's probably best that we keep those things behind closed doors.'

During his season-ending news conference Thursday, Kupchak said under no circumstances would he trade Bryant but would not rule out the possibility of trading O'Neal.

Those remarks angered O'Neal to the point that he reportedly demanded a trade through agent Perry Rogers. Rogers did not return a call seeking comment Monday.

Kupchak, meanwhile, said he needed to hear O'Neal or his agents say personally that he wanted to be traded in order to address the seriousness of the situation.

"Other than what I've read in the paper, I have not heard otherwise,' Kupchak said. "So I would like to hear first-hand from his representatives exactly where they stand. I talk to representatives all the time, and it's important for me to know how our players feel.'

But Kupchak said that he would not like trading O'Neal and would wait to do so even if O'Neal's position remains unchanged.

"That's not something we want to do or is it something we prefer to do,' Kupchak said. "As you know, he's under contract for two more years ... There's a lot of emotion that goes along with a season that we had, that ended like ours did.

"Expectations were just so high that I'm a little bit concerned that we just won't get past that.'

O'Neal is due to make a league-high $27.7 million next season and trading him would be a complicated matter as teams over the salary cap would have to return players to the Lakers with contracts equal to at least 85 percent of what O'Neal would have made, according to the collective bargaining agreement.

Orlando Magic guard Tracy McGrady told a Florida newspaper over the weekend that he and O'Neal talked about playing for Mark Cuban in Dallas next season. But a seven-player trade sending McGrady to Houston reportedly was near completion Monday.

"We talk all the time about it,' McGrady told Florida Today on Saturday. "Me and the Big Fella are trying to get to Dallas together now.'

With Rudy Tomjanovich set to interview today for the Lakers head coaching job, Kupchak said he hoped to have a new coach in place by the start of July. He said he would interview multiple candidates but suggested if not by name that Tomjanovich has the credentials they are seeking.

"We feel that next year, we're going to be in a position to win,' Kupchak said. "And I don't think we want to take the chance that we're going to experiment with an unproven coach. I'm not ruling out the possibility that our coach could be an assistant coach on our team or another team.

"But I think, at this time, we want to indicate that we feel committed to continue to win here. And I think, at least initially, our best chances would be with a coach that has some NBA head-coaching experience.'

Tomjanovich, though, might not be as inclined to take the Lakers job if O'Neal left for another team.

And so started the first full week of the Lakers' off-season. The team also has a draft to prepare for Thursday. The focus, though, seems to be on trying to move forward from the Finals loss and the drama that engulfed the season.

"When it's that personal and it doesn't go the way you hope, there's just as much emotion going the other way,' Kupchak said. "I think that has a lot to do with things. And certainly with some passage of time, maybe a new coach, maybe some things might change.'

The Lakers have left Jamal Sampson and Rick Fox unprotected and available to the Charlotte Bobcats in today's NBA expansion draft. The Bobcats can select only one player from each team, though, and Sampson has been given indications he could be taken.

Phoenix's Jahidi White and Cleveland's Jason Kapono (UCLA) are expected to be among Charlotte's selections.

Jackson attended to final business Monday at the Lakers' offices and Kupchak said the team and coach parted on good, albeit slightly awkward, relations.

"I don't think it's a situation where you clean out an office and you're gone the next day,' Kupchak said. "So it's not that type of environment.

"He walked by a little while ago and I said, 'Hey Coach,' and kind of looked at him. And I wondered to myself, 'Did I say the wrong thing?''

Ross Siler can be reached at (818) 713-3607.

[Poindexter Einstein]

During his season-ending news conference Thursday, Kupchak said under no circumstances would he trade Bryant but would not rule out the possibility of trading O'Neal.

Those remarks angered O'Neal to the point that he reportedly demanded a trade through agent Perry Rogers. Rogers did not return a call seeking comment Monday.

Kupchak, meanwhile, said he needed to hear O'Neal or his agents say personally that he wanted to be traded in order to address the seriousness of the situation.

IS THIS A CASE OF THE LAKERS LOOKING FOR A TRADE REQUEST, TO VOID THE NO-TRADE PROVISION? WHY DID HE SAY IN PARA 1 THAT O'NEAL COULD BE TRADED - BEFORE O'NEAL SPOKE ON FRIDAY?

]"Other than what I've read in the paper, I have not heard otherwise,' Kupchak said. "So I would like to hear first-hand from his representatives exactly where they stand. I talk to representatives all the time, and it's important for me to know how our players feel.'

ANOTHER PUSH TO GET SHAQ TO VOID THE NO-TRADE CONTROL THAT SHAQ HAS?

MY COMMENT - Looking at all this, Kupchak really looks like a smooth snake to me.

[sike]

Kupchak just looks stupid in all this....Jerry West is laughing...

[jayC]

Oneal shouldn't say things in public, well kupchak you shouldn't paint oneal into a corner say that kobe is the franchise and then say if oneal demanded a trade you would do it.

[ddh33]

I said to expect this.

I think this is all LA posturing. They are going to trade Shaq. Then, they are going to turn around and say that they only did it to make him him happy. They are going to try to make their organization look like the good guy. But I don't think it can happen. Everyone already knows who the bad guys are here...and it ain't Shaq.

[Dooby]

Astute analysis from ddh33. This is posturing from an idiot. Notice there is no mention of Shaq skipping out on the exit interview. Maybe that was a joke, too.

They can't make it look like Kobe is the bad guy and they are trying to put a spin on the mess they've created. They had the choice: Shaq or Kobe. They chose Kobe. They should admit.

Maybe they've seen the first bit of trade offers and are disappointed and want to dispel the sense of urgency. Unfortunately for LA, Shaq is only worth what others are ready and willing to pay. Everybody wants Shaq, but very, very few teams have what it takes to make a deal happen. Which is why Shaq will be a Mav.

It could be that Cuban is smart by moving slowly. Let LA be underwhelmed by the first offers so as to make it clear that Dallas is the best deal and only real option.

[kg_veteran]

It could be that Cuban is smart by moving slowly. Let LA be underwhelmed by the first offers so as to make it clear that Dallas is the best deal and only real option.

I agree. Cuban's comments about not having contacted LA certainly suggested a lack of urgency by Dallas to try and get something done. That was a bit of negotiating genius by Cuban, IMO.

Some high stakes poker being played. Fun to watch the bluffing going on...

[LRB]

Dallas can not get Shaq and still have a good chance at putting a contending team together this coming season. LA has less chance of keeping Shaq and having a good chance of putting a contending team together this coming season. They need to trade Shaq much more than we need to trade for him. Given that very few teams can even do the trade under CBA rules and even fewer can do it and still have any talent at all to surround Shaq and very few teams would Shaq not veto a trade and extremely few owners will pay Shaq's extention and figure in that Dallas meets all requirements and has the talent and contracts to trade to LA. They need us, but they won't give Shaq a way for free much less pay to give him away. We'll have to give them something good, but nowhere near the talent that Shaq is.

So Cubes is being extremely smart. The more desperate that LA gets the cheaper Shaq will be. If we act desperate to get him, then we could end up paying a heck of a lot more than we'd have to. Also on the possibility that all this is just posturing by all parties and Shaq will be staying in LA it pays for the Mavs to keep pursuing other options.

[birdsanctuary]

I agree with you LRB on this one. Based on every posible senario, the Mavs are clearly in the driver's seat. The only exception would be if LA decides to basically give Shaq away to the east. I believe the mavs have the best return for LA's predictament.

I've never really had any respect for Kupchak, he is just a Jerry West flunkie wannabe! He's never done anything substantial in LA anyways. GP and Malone fell into his lap!

Were not laughing you dork!

[bcrav4]

That is the stuidest thing Kuptchek has ever said...'he may be kidding.' What an idiot. Who would kid about not liking the way and direction that the team is going?? Who would be kidding and say that they don't want to be a part of that direction anymore????? That's like saying T-Mac was kidding...and we all know where he is ending up (his first choice, hopefully Shaq will too) BTW Didn't Shaq talk to LA again and say that he still wanted to leave???