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Cover Story - Spanish Version

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Comprehension Quiz

Teacher's Guide and Worksheets

5 Questions for Shaq!

Miami Heat center Shaquille O'Neal, 34, is chasing the NBA title

1How would you grade the state of the game in the NBA?

A When I came in, 14 years ago, it was an A-. After [Michael] Jordan left [in 1993] it kind of went down to a C- for a while. Now it's at a B+. It's not like it was when Magic [Johnson] and [Larry] Bird were at their prime, but it's close.

2The NBA is using a new ball this year. What do you think of it?

A The ball is terrible. It's something we'll just have to get used to. [The NBA] is getting too corporate. There are too many rules that don't really make sense--for example, about our shorts being too long.

3 Your scoring and rebounding were at career lows last season. What do you say to people who doubt you're still a threat?

A The day I stopped worrying about my stats was the day I started winning.

4 Who's your favorite athlete outside of basketball?

A I'm going to have to go with [professional golfer] Tiger Woods because he's so dominant right now.

5 Miami won the championship last year. Are you willing to predict a Heat repeat?

A I can't really predict it right now because I don't want to cause bad luck for us. But we have to repeat. Anything less would be uncivilized.

Next: Scientists Find a Big Bad Bird