O’Neal Is Prepared for ‘Off-Court Crazy’

Shaquille O’Neal made some vital preparations for the upcoming season Saturday.

He stepped into a carnival ride, then laughed along with all of the other kids as they whirled around and spun through the air. He waded through a crowd of children and autographs seekers as he went from one stage that featured a salsa band, past another stage with a reggae band, not to mention all of the promotional booths, carnival games and food stands at his eighth annual “Shaqtacular” event to benefit Athletes and Entertainers for Kids’ mentoring programs.

So let the sideshow begin. Hurry, hurry, step right on in.

Appropriately enough, there’s a huge blue-and-gold circus tent outside Staples Center right now. But don’t think that the show will stop when the Cirque du Soleil leaves town.

As if the addition of future Hall of Famers Gary Payton and Karl Malone to O’Neal and Kobe Bryant would not attract enough attention, the whole saga will be played under the specter of a sexual assault charge against Bryant.

Along with the usual assortment of Laker beat reporters heading to Hawaii at the end of the month, national sportswriters from Associated Press, USA Today and television crews from shows such as “Access Hollywood” and “Extra” will make the trip. Everywhere they go this year, the Lakers can expect an abundance of fans, media and maybe even protesters.

O’Neal has experienced NBA Finals, All-Star games and even a stint with Dennis Rodman -- and he knows they were nothing like what’s in store.

“My life has always been crazy, but it’s been basketball crazy,” O’Neal said. “Of course, this year it’s going to be off-the-court crazy. We have to develop a simple system and stick with that.”

O’Neal has already formulated a stock answer for queries about Bryant.

“I’m not going to speculate, I’m not going to wonder,” O’Neal said. “I will say that hopefully the case will be resolved quickly and be a pain-free process for both parties. But we don’t know how that’s going to be. Of course, there’s going to be some guy that’s going to try to prolong and try to get in his head and ask other people what [Bryant] thinks. I don’t know what he’s going through, I don’t know what he’s thinking. I can’t speak for him. I always say, I have faith in the justice system.”

As for the team, “things like this can break you or make you stronger. We’ve got a couple of hungry veterans on our team, so hopefully it will make us stronger. I’m sure it won’t bother Gary or Karl. You know it won’t bother me. The young guys we probably have to look out for. As long as they follow our lead, they should be fine.”

O’Neal figures they won’t encounter anything as dramatic as when he visited Asherton, Texas, when he played for Cole High in San Antonio.

“They used to have straw dummies of me on fire when I’d come to the building,” he said.

“And then in college [Louisiana State], of course, going to Kentucky and Mississippi State, that’s rowdy. Those have been the worst. I don’t think it’s going to be any worse than that. Of course, you’re going to get people saying stuff, but that happens all the time.”

O’Neal appears mentally and physically ready for whatever comes his way. He showed off his slimmer figure Saturday in a throwback Julius Erving Roosevelt high school jersey.

O’Neal rested and recuperated after the Lakers’ second-round exit from the playoffs, then began working out. He has lost weight, and the toe and knee that bothered him feel better.

“Even though the outcome of the year wasn’t good, it can still turn out to be great,” O’Neal said. “Those things that are bad always come to be great. There’s nothing worser than worst. The worst thing that happened was that we lost. I had a great summer, got a lot of rest, we made a lot of moves in the off-season. Everything’s good. I’m good.”

Come one, come all. Step right up.

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J.A. Adande can be reached at ja.adande@latimes.com