Michael Ventre

You know he’s fuming. You know he’s sitting in front of the television, flipping on anything having to do with Heat-Pistons, then immediately becoming irritated, then switching off to something inane to get his mind off it like “South Park” or the evening news. He does this routine 24/7, back and forth between hoops and distractions, because he’s on vacation now.

Shaquille O’Neal is in a position to win another NBA championship and Kobe Bryant isn’t.

While Kobe stews at home in Newport Beach, practicing his outside shot, taking care of kids and text-messaging ex-players who criticize him, Shaq is getting ready to face the Dallas Mavericks in the NBA Finals.

Just four more victories and Shaq will add a fourth ring to his collection. Just four more victories and Kobe will explode.

If Shaq does indeed lead his new team to a title, it won’t quell the “Kobe or Shaq?” debate in Los Angeles and beyond. That argument shifts with the prevailing wind. Just a couple weeks ago Shaq was old and slow, while Kobe was dynamic and unstoppable. After the Suns walloped the no-show Lakers in a Game 7 and the Heat advanced to the Eastern Conference finals, the pendulum swung, and now Kobe is a choker while Shaq is all-powerful. Wait another 15 minutes and it could change again.

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The particulars of the discussion are not as important here as the bottom line:

Shaq is still playing. Kobe isn’t.

You just know Shaq is digging it, too. He probably celebrates each playoff victory by sticking one more pin into a Kobe voodoo doll. But he’s a pro. He’s not getting too cocky yet. He knows there’s still work to do. He realizes that hiring a small plane to drag a banner that says “Eat Your Hearts Out, Suckas!” and flying it over Kobe and Jerry Buss’s homes would be a bit premature.

Yet Shaq is surely savoring this moment. He made peace with Kobe back in January, on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, at the urging of Bill Russell, but that doesn’t mean professional pride and ego aren’t fueling his efforts to knock off the Mavs.

When the Heat obtained Shaq in a trade for Lamar Odom, Brian Grant, Caron Butler and a first-round pick in July of 2004, all parties knew Shaq wasn’t going to be as spry and dominant as he was in his youth. He is now 34 and in his 14^th NBA season. After carrying around anywhere from 300 to 350 pounds for most of that time, his knees probably look like the shock absorbers from a 1986 Chevy pickup.

But the Heat obtained him for the postseason. The regular season is almost optional for him, because Miami has enough talent on its roster to get through 82 games and finish at or near the top of the East standings while Shaq plays a role that swings from supporting to cameo. Now that the season is drawing to a close, Shaq can see the end, and it motivates him.

MESSAGE BOARDS

He can see Kobe, too.

This isn’t just about winning another ring for Shaq. This is about proving his worth. This is about showing Buss that embracing Kobe and jilting Shaq comes at a price.

I can’t say I thought the Miami Heat in its current state had the intangibles necessary to win an NBA championship. I’m still not convinced. The Mavericks could continue to play as well as they've ever played. The Heat, with its collection of mixed nuts that includes Gary Payton, Antoine Walker and Jason Williams, could still disintegrate in a flurry of name-calling, confusion and failure.