NBA's black dynamic duos bring flavor to the game

Jet, March 25, 2002 by Melody K. Hoffman

Dynamic duos are bringing some new flavor to the NBA.

The Los Angeles Lakers' Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant, the Boston Celtics' Antoine Walker and Paul Pierce, the Sacramento Kings' Chris Webber and Mike Bibby, and the New Jersey Nets' Jason Kidd and Kenyon Martin are some of the NBA's Black dynamic duos who are using their on-court chemistry to lead their teams to victories and to create double-trouble for their opponents.

These players are making names for themselves reminiscent of the all-time greatest duos like the five-NBA-title-Lakers Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Magic Johnson of the 1980s and Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen of the 1990s six-title Chicago Bulls.

While history's best NBA duos and the finest of the current duos remain an undisputed topic for discussion, the Lakers' O'Neal and Bryant's extraordinary inside/outside tandem puts up a tough argument of being the best ever. Working with different personalities, their impeccable playing ability is the foundation of their back-to-back championship team.

The Laker stars both average more than 25 points per game and are currently two of the top five scorers in the league. Also, last year O'Neal, a center, and Bryant, the team's shooting guard, became the first Black duo (only the second in history) to average more than 25 points a season and win the NBA championship in that season as well.

"We're the greatest duo ever," O'Neal said about his Batman and Robin tandem. "The best ever. The only ones who are close are Magic and Kareem and (Boston's Larry) Bird and (Kevin) McHale. You look at Magic and Kareem: Magic had flavor, and Kareem was the big guy to go with it. But Kobe has flavor and I have flavor, so we're the best."

Bryant added, "Growing up I looked at Magic and Kareem and Bird and McHale as the best duos in the league. I think that we're unique. Offensively, I think we're more aggressive than some of the others in the past. Magic was definitely more of a point guard-type player, and I'm more of a scorer."

O'Neal, 30, and Bryant, 23, rank as the highest-scoring duo in the NBA, and the connection they share is thrilling on the basketball court.

Another exciting pair is the Celtics' Paul Pierce, 24, and 25-year-old Antoine Walker, who are the second highest-scoring duo. The two forwards and co-leaders of the squad use their versatility to operate the front court. As the two top scorers on the team, the one-two punch is engineering the Celtics to a possible post-season.

The 6-foot-9 Walker and 6-foot-6 Pierce are a double threat to their opponents with their behind-the-back passes to each other and their quick flashes to the basket.

"Antoine and I have been feeding off each other," Pierce said. That's just something that comes natural after playing together. I think with our work ethic in practice and how demanding we are off the court, other guys feed off that and understand we have one goal, and that's to win ball games."

Walker says he has a good time playing with Pierce. "It's been a great experience just having somebody on the court that I can count on and believe in and have that chemistry among each other. It's been the best situation for me because we have been together for a few years now, and it's starting to click; everything is working on one level."

The Kings' royal pair, Chris Webber and Mike Bibby, are leading one of the top teams in the NBA to a potential championship season.

The court-savvy Webber is the team's leading scorer and Bibby's unselfish approach has six of his teammates, including Webber, averaging in double figures.

This is Bibby's first season with the Kings, and it took no time for the prime-time players to mesh. The Black duo credits the on-court chemistry to synchronized thinking.

"I think we have good chemistry because it's a point guard and a power forward running the pick and roll, so we have to be on the same page a lot," Webber, 29, said of him and Bibby.

"I think our chemistry is good because we trust each other. I trust the fact that he's a great player, and he's going to make some great decisions. If I just go over and set the pick, then I'll get the ball when I'm open, or I won't get the ball when I'm not open. And I think his trust in me is the same. So, I think it all just starts with the trust, knowing that that person is going to make the right decision, and I know he's going to make the right decision."

Bibby, 23, praised his teammate the same way. He says with them, the opponent has to pick their poison. "I think we both know the game a lot. The screen and roll I think is hard to stop between us two, because you have to stop me going to the basket, or stop his roll, or stop his jump shot. So you've got to pick what you want to happen."

Jason Kidd, who is playing his first season with the New Jersey Nets, formed an immediate chemistry with Kenyon Martin. Kidd is a talented point guard whose flair for passing looks like magic. So he can basically bring out the best of any player.

However, Kidd and Martin's special combustible ingredients have ignited to turn around a team that only won 26 games last year. By the mid-point of this season, at All-Star break, the Nets had already posted 32 wins.