He Still Provides a Big Reaction

Upon reading the latest round from Shaq apologists in the June 3 letters, I couldn’t help but reflect that they both conveniently ignore something quite glaring:

If Shaquille O’Neal had agreed to the same contract with the Lakers as he did with Miami -- five years, $100 million -- he’d still be in purple and gold. Instead, he tried to hold up Jerry Buss for much, much more, and the good doctor wisely chose not to overspend on a great player on the downside of his career.

Plus, does anyone really think Shaq would have gotten into the shape he’s in today if he’d stayed with the Lakers, or would he have again postponed off-season surgeries in order to enjoy his “vacation,” at the expense of team cohesion at the start of the season? Quite simply, Shaq couldn’t deal with having to share the spotlight with the best player in the game ... end of story. Go Mavs!

TOM MAGUIRE

Hollywood

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I would enjoy reading the opinions of The Times’ sportswriters -- authorities all -- as to which of these three worst trades of all time was truly the dumbest, and why:

1. The Babe, from Red Sox to Yankees.

2. Pedro, from Dodgers to Montreal.

3. Shaq, from Lakers to Heat.

GREY R. BROOKS

Prescott, Ariz.