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Jackson won’t rip Shaq’s shape

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Times Staff Writer

ATLANTA -- It was a trap Phil Jackson was not about to be drawn into.

In discussing the acquisition of Shaquille O’Neal by the Phoenix Suns, Jackson was asked if the move might motivate O’Neal to get in better shape.

It seemed like a reasonable question, considering O’Neal is going from the Miami Heat, the worst team in the league, to the Phoenix Suns, the top team in the Western Conference.

“I don’t like that line of questioning,” Jackson said. “There are deteriorating returns when you are 7-foot-1 and 300 and whatever he is [pounds]. When you have multiple problems in your legs -- feet, knees, hips -- it’s real difficult. All the tall guys have stability issues that go along with trying to maintain their foundation.

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“I think Shaq wanted to play as well as he could for Miami. He had a short stay [3 1/2 seasons], but a good stay there. They won a championship. I’m sure he feels some affinity for them.”

Jackson, however, couldn’t help himself. He had to toss out at least one line at O’Neal’s expense. Asked how he thought O’Neal would be most effective for Phoenix, the Lakers coach said, “Taking the ball out of bounds and waiting for the other team to get back.”

Normally on a day when they didn’t get into town until 3 a.m., following a Tuesday night game in New Jersey, the Lakers would be allowed to skip the morning shoot-around. But Jackson went ahead with it to determine the limitations posed by dislocated right pinkie of Kobe Bryant.

Jackson was pleased by what he saw at the shoot-around, although Bryant was unable to match that performance in the game, making four of 16 shots.

Bryant conceded the ball has a different feel to it with his injured pinkie taped to the adjoining finger, leaving him only three flexible fingers. Yet he was still able to get a game-high 10 assists in Wednesday’s 98-95 loss to the Atlanta Hawks.

His finger permitting, Bryant will instruct 120 students at a clinic at Centennial Middle School in Miami on Saturday afternoon.

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Bryant has been invited to participate in the three-point shootout during All-Star weekend, but his finger makes his questionable.

Joe Johnson was Atlanta’s leading scorer with a game-high 28 points, but former Laker Tyronn Lue also played a key role. He make six of 10 shots, including two of three from three-point range, and finished with 16 points. Lue scored half his points in the fourth quarter when the Hawks came back from an eight-point deficit.

On a night when the Lakers were outrebounded 46-37, Atlanta’s top two men on the boards were 6-10 Al Horford (20 rebounds) and 6-9 Josh Smith (nine).

“We were just resilient down there,” Smith said. “We’re outmatched every night, but it’s all about heart. We understand we’re outsized, but we don’t use that as an excuse.”

Pau Gasol scored his 9,000th career point. . . . It was the first time the Lakers lost when all five starters scored in double figures and the first time when six players scored in double figures.

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steve.springer@latimes.com

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