Shaq-Kobe Feud Just a Hoax

Shaquille O'Neal was at it again last week. He claimed his well-publicized feud with Kobe Bryant was all "marketing."

"We helped you hype it up," O'Neal, now with the Phoenix Suns, told ESPN's Stephen A. Smith in an interview shown Friday. "I know what I'm doing, brother. I'm the smartest player in the world. ... It was all marketing, brother."

Asked what might have happened if the team had stayed intact, O'Neal said, "We'd probably have about six or seven (championships) now, easily."

Oh yeah.

The trade.

Shaquille O'Neal to the Miami Heat for a bunch of garbage. O'Neal won another championship, while the Lakers haven't.

If the feud was a hoax, why did the Lakers' trade the centerpiece to their title hopes?

Just wondering.