Los Angeles' game was going well for the first half, even if Dwight Howard may've been doing his best to pay homage to O'Neal throughout the game.
Dwight Howard is going to miss as many free throws as he can, in honor of Shaq's jersey retirement
— Eric Pincus (@EricPincus) April 3, 2013 It all started out with Shaq's family rocking out onto the floor and a terrific and hilarious video tribute. That was followed with a recorded video speech from Kobe Bryant, congratulating his former teammate for his deserved honor.
The biggest takeaway from the first few minutes of it all was just that Shaq was wearing a damn shiny suit.
Shaq twitter.com/DuranSports/st…
— Beto Duran (@DuranSports) April 3, 2013 Phil Jackson came out next, and that's when things started to get awkward. The fans weren't exactly supportive of their current head coach.
Phil Jackson can't quiet the Lakers crowd and their chants of "We want Phil!" and "Bring back Phil!"
— Arash Markazi (@ArashMarkazi) April 3, 2013 Eventually Jackson gave his speech—the main takeaway being that Shaq was a weird dude but Phil enjoyed being around him.
Phil Jackson: "Fun, fun, fun. Did we have fun?"
— Dave McMenamin (@mcten) April 3, 2013 Phil Jackson: "Shaq didn't wear a lot of clothes."
— Zach Harper (@talkhoops) April 3, 2013 After halftime, Craig Sager reported that the Lakers heard the "We want Phil" chants back in the locker room. The reaction was mostly a shoulder shrug and a realization that they've got a crucial basketball game to play.
Jeanie Buss came forward next, as they finally unveiled th...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Los Angeles Lakers
