LeBron-Shaq Show a Work in Progress

CLEVELAND -- He always has a rapper's catchphrase for everything and everyone, primarily himself. And while Shaquille O'Neal really should adopt The Big Hypothermia -- an ode to a bone-chilled, unemployment-scarred town that couldn't be farther from Hollywood if it were on Uranus -- it's typical that he would produce a more creative, applicable nickname.

"I'm the Big Witness Protection Program," he said, playing off the Nike ad extravaganza for LeBron James. "I've come here to protect the King."

Works for me. Given their collective magnitude in pop culture, it's hard to fathom that Shaq, maybe the greatest entertainer ever known to sports, has arrived in middle-market Ohio to join hands with James, who soon will push aside old man Tiger Woods as the most prominent athlete in the land, if not the world. But this is the unusual bond that happens when the Cavaliers feel extreme urgency to win an NBA championship for James, so he doesn't flee next summer for New York -- and the Phoenix Suns only feel urgency to watch their bottom line. Shaq is shipped to Cleveland for a few pierogies, and, suddenly, a beleaguered town that hasn't won a major sports title since 1964 becomes pro basketball's epicenter.

LeBron, Shaq and the Cavs will make 29 national TV appearances this regular season. If the first game Tuesday night was a hint of what's ahead, well, put it this way: There's work to do before they become a piece of art, much less a champion. Not to overreact in late October, but it was a night when the Boston Celtics -- remember them? -- overcame an early 14-point hole with energy and defense, withstood Shaq's wicked blow to Kevin Garnett's upper body, took advantage of the Cavs' glaring defensive lapses and slashed right through the Witness Protection Program, winning 95-89 and quieting a crowd that waved "Win One For The King" signs.

"You can't win a championship in the first game," said O'Neal, who was impressive early before fading in the final three quarters, giving the fans a taste of his free-throw ineptitude with two late bricks. "We have 100 games left. We'll be fine."

Maybe. But losing at home so soon is a shock to the Cavs, who won their first 23 last season at Quicken Loans Arena en route to a 39-2 record. And already, James looked and sounded like someone who knows the bright lights are shining on this team like never before. Forced back into his one-man-gang domination with 38 points, eight assists and four blocks, including two all-ball slap-aways off layup tries that boggled the mind, he showed frustration by constantly yapping at the officials and slamming the ball when he was whistled for carrying it late in the fourth quarter. Afterward, he said his teammates are too tentative offensively and aren't in sync with the plays. Um, didn't Shaq say the other day that he was still learning the plays?

"Offensively, if we're not on the same page, we're back to one-on-one basketball. And we don't want to do that," said James, who took only 22 shots on a night when no other Cav scored more than 12 points. "If we're not on the same page on offense, it's gonna be difficult to score. We were pretty passive -- trying to make the right play, too unselfish."

As for O'Neal, he had 10 points and 10 rebounds, but more than half of that statistical effort came in the first 7:20 of the first quarter. When he was pulled by coach Mike Brown, whose performance will be scrutinized like no other coach in the league, the Cavs led 21-12 and appeared ready to blow out the Celtics. He also sat the first five minutes of the second quarter, and by the time he returned, the Celtics had tied the game at 34-34. So here we go already, a Shaq minutes controversy.

"Yeah, I'd rather stay in and tell [Brown] when I need a rest," said O'Neal, mumbling in a low tone by his locker. "But he's the coach."

He made his comments respectfully, though he wasn't hesitant to make his feelings known. And to Brown's credit, he said he's still trying to figure out O'Neal's proper workload as a 37-year-old big man who likely will have a long postseason ahead of him. "I didn't do a good job with substitutions. We didn't always have a flow, and we were disjointed," Brown said. "I've got to get a feel for his minutes. Big Fella's gonna help us, help us a lot. At the beginning of the game, he was going good."

Then why not leave him in? "I can go more than six, seven minutes," O'Neal said.

All it means it that this is a work in progress, that no magic carpet will sweep the Cavs into June and a much-desired Finals matchup with Kobe Bryant and the Lakers. The Celtics didn't look like a team whose Big Three is a combined 100 years old. Rather, they were energized again by the dynamic point guard, Rajon Rondo, and bolstered by the offense and outside shooting of a widely despised newcomer, Rasheed Wallace. The Cavs couldn't match up at times with Wallace, Ray Allen and Paul Pierce, and with Garnett looking sturdy and effective in his first game in seven months, the Celtics made a statement that they aren't dead yet as a contender. "I felt like it was my first AAU game. I was excited," said Garnett, who had 13 points, 10 rebounds and three blocks in 33 minutes while still moving somewhat gingerly. "I'm still getting the cobwebs and dust off my game, but we got a win out of this, and that's good. We saw this as a way to measure ourselves early. Good win."

Veterans that they are, the Celtics weren't bothered in the least by the shenanigans of Glen (Big Baby) Davis, who foolishly engaged a childhood friend in a fight inside an SUV, broke his thumb and will be out six to eight weeks. The Celtics suspended him for violating a clause in a two-year, $6-million contract extension he signed over the summer. Team owner Wyc Grousbeck, rarely heard from in his tenure, ripped Davis Tuesday, telling a Boston TV station, "I'm not going to call him 'Big Baby' anymore. He's Glen. He needs to act like Glen."

Said coach Doc Rivers: "When we got the results back, we were hoping that it was going to be a bad lesson, but not a lesson that was going to hurt our team as well. It turned out to be both. The one thing we didn't want to do early in the year is to extend minutes to Kevin or Rasheed. And that's where, if this injury did anything, it may throw some of those plans out a little bit. We may have to lean on some other guys to just burn some minutes for us."

It seemed the sort of distraction that would bog down the Celtics in their opener, especially the way the Cavaliers exploded out of their locker room. How fitting that LeBron says he's dressing up like Batman on Halloween -- "I'm in a position now to call people and get the authentic stuff -- armored gear, head, shoes and boots," he said -- while Shaq continues to believe he's Superman. They busted onto the scene like two superheroes, and a crowd that has to deal with the annual bumbling of the Browns and Indians went predictably berserk.

Quickly, though, the glee settled into a reality that the Eastern Conference is even better this season. Whether the Cavs go to the Finals depends on developing the new chemistry. "We'll figure it out. It's a long, long season," James said. But it also depends on O'Neal's ability to stay healthy and be a force.

"I thought he did OK," James said blandly of Shaq's opening night. "I don't want to make too much of the first game. There's still a transition period for all of us. He was short on some shots I know he wishes he made. But he's a winner. If you're a winner and you play hard, you'll fit in here."

"Need to make those shots," agreed O'Neal, who missed six of 11 from the field and, of course, missed two fourth-quarter free throws that had the crowd murmuring. There also are the mental-health issues of the troubled Delonte West, who walked into the locker room before the game, said nothing to anyone and was inactive after his wife filed a domestic-violence report, this after a preseason of loaded guns and unexcused absences.

For now, the result isn't as important as how LeBron meshes with Shaq. The early answer: They get along very well, on and off the court, a vibe that reflects their desire to win a title together without any concern about clashing egos. "People look too far into individuals than the team aspect of things," James said. "They think two stars can't co-exist. But it's not just about me and Shaq. It's about the whole team. Me and Shaq can't do it by ourselves. We need everybody on the floor to work hard every day to make this thing happen."

Brown said afterward that everyone wasn't working hard. "On the defensive end, there were a lot of uncontested shots by Boston," he said. "One of our staples is to contest the shot. Defensively, we have to make sure everyone is going all the way." Is Shaq part of the problem? Hasn't he has defensive lapses? He certainly sent a message with a borderline dirty slam job on Garnett, who hit the floor but smiled. They talked later.

"I just went up for the ball. He knows I'm a clean player," O'Neal said.

This is very much LeBron's team and operation, if there was any doubt. The concession stands are still dominated by No. 23 gear, "Witness" shirts, all things King James. You can find Shaq's No. 33 jersey but it's alongside Mo Williams' No. 2, Daniel Gibson's No. 1 and Zydrunas Ilgauskas' No. 11. A big-screen video, played during team introductions, begins with Shaq bigfooting through the downtown streets, but it soon becomes a LeBron production. Shaq was introduced third-to-last, in a crouch with his clenched fist extended, but LeBron was introduced last and jacked up the crowd with a walking crab crawl, accentuated by a scowl.

Never mind that LeBron has hosted Saturday Night Live, does memorable commercials, had his own museum in China and did a just-released book about growing up with his buddies. Never mind that O'Neal starred in a very bad full-length movie, does memorable commercials, has 2.5 million Twitter followers, has been a featured rapper and just hosted Shaq Vs. on ABC, in which he competed against other athletes in their respective sports. In the Q, as the downtown arena is called, they couldn't care less about their Q ratings or one-upping the other.

"My motto is simple: Win a ring for the king," O'Neal said. "Being the father of six children, I know LeBron is like one of those kids who gets good grades and does everything right. He's a team player and a great guy in the locker room. So I don't have to come in and say do this and do that, my job is to just fit in. He has what it takes."

"Everybody in this league has always looked at Shaq like the Godfather of the league,'' James said. "When you come into this league, you need to get to know him, like the guy needs to sign some papers before you play a game. I have always been comfortable with being around him. It's not hard to get along with Shaq."

Especially when O'Neal goes out of his way, seemingly each day, to puff up The King. One day, he says, "I had no idea anyone was funnier than me, but LeBron is." Another day, he sees LeBron's two young sons, who run to him like an uncle, and teaches them handshakes. Shaq's motivation isn't hard to figure out; nearing the end of his career, with his fifth NBA team, he wants a fifth championship ring so he can have one more than Bryant, his one-time nemesis, and Tim Duncan, his contemporary as an elite big man. Ideally, the Cavs would play the Lakers in June.

But that is a very long time from now.

"I'll be seeing you guys all season," James told reporters as lukewarm, uneaten pizza sat nearby.

And we'll be monitoring their progress all season. So far, they need a lot of practice time together. We'll leave it at that.