NBA Forum >> 2011 finals,1st time no Timmy,Shaq& Kobe in 13yrs

http://hangtime.blogs.nba.com/2011/05/12/the-official-end-of-an-era/

The Miami Heat's elimination of the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference semifinals last night at American Airlines Arena guaranteed that we'll have a NBA Finals that doesn't include Shaquille O'Neal, Tim Duncan or Kobe Bryant for the first time since the 1998-99 season.


Think about that for a second ... let it marinate ... and then realize that those are the three players that define their generation. Their faces make up the Mount Rushmore of the league since 1998. No one starred brighter on the biggest stage as much as -- or more often than -- those three future Hall of Famers.


Their teams fell like dominoes in this postseason. Duncan's Spurs went out in the first round to the No. 8-seeded Hang Time Grizzlies, a shocking exit for a team that finished with the best record in the Western Conference during the regular season.

Bryant's Lakers topped Duncan's crew, losing to Dallas in the conference semifinals in just four games. It was a stunning end to the two-time defending champions' threepeat bid and the worst possible way for Phil Jackson -- the fourth face on our hoops Mount Rushmore from this passing era -- to end his Hall of Fame coaching career.


Shaq wasn't even in uniform for the Celtics' finale, his body betraying him in the twilight of his career the way it has so many other larger-than-life legends before him. His inability to play against the Heat no doubt changed the course of the Celtics' playoff fortunes, while also raising the question (once again) about what time is the best time for a living legend to ride off into the sunset.