One Thing He’s Not Losing Is Gift for Gab

Shaquille O’Neal, who turns 34 today, may have lost a step or two, but he’s still quick-witted.

O’Neal told ESPN’s Rachel Nichols that he is a “little bit slower but much smarter.” He also said, “Mentally, I’m a lot better. Physically, I’m either the same or I’m losing it a bit, but the older you get, that happens.”

Nichols: “In what ways do you think you’re losing it a little bit?”

O’Neal: “I can’t do the Vince Carter baseline windmill like I used to, but that’s OK.... But the older I get, the sexier I get -- that’s all that matters.”

Trivia time: Arizona’s 21 consecutive NCAA men’s tournament appearances constitutes the longest current streak in college basketball and the second-longest ever. What school holds the record?

On second thought: Dick Bennett, Washington State’s retiring basketball coach, tried to discourage Arizona Coach Lute Olson from giving him a retirement gift, reports freelance journalist Howie Stalwick.

But then Bennett found out what the gift involved. In a pregame ceremony Thursday at Tucson, Bennett gladly accepted a pass for a long weekend of free golf at a Tucson resort.

Just call him “Jiffy” Lute: Arizona finished the season tied for fourth in the Pacific 10 Conference after losing to second-place Washington on Saturday.

It has been an inconsistent season for Arizona, prompting FSN commentator Marques Johnson to recently say, “The Wildcats have played this season with the check-engine light on. So Lute Olson is officially the fourth Pep Boy ... Manny, Moe, Jack and Lute.”

Trick question: In the spirit of the NFL’s Wonderlic test, TNT’s “Inside the NBA” crew created a test for Charles Barkley called the “WonderChuck.”

Barkley’s first question: “If Charles, playing for Phoenix, grabbed a defensive rebound, took two dribbles, passed to Kevin Johnson, then ran the floor with Dan Majerle, who would get the fastbreak dunk?”

Barkley’s answer: “Dan Marjerle.”

The correct answer: “It’s a moot point. Charles would never pass to Kevin Johnson.”

No fitness freak: Golfer John Daly told FHM magazine that he has never stepped into a gym because “they won’t let me smoke in there.”

Name game: “Arte Moreno is enjoying the World Baseball Classic so much that he decided to buy Team USA,” claims reader Steve Sussman. “It will now be known as the United States of Anaheim.”

Looking back: On this day in 2000, O’Neal scored 61 points and had 23 rebounds to lead the Lakers to a 123-103 victory over the Clippers. It was the 52nd time in NBA history that a player scored 60 or more points.

Trivia answer: North Carolina with 27 consecutive tournament appearances.

And finally: There doesn’t appear to be any letup in the jokes about skier Bode Miller. “Did you hear that Miller is in trouble again?” wrote Scott Ostler in Sunday’s San Francisco Chronicle. “He got pulled over because he wasn’t weaving.”

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Larry Stewart can be reached at larry.stewart@latimes.com.