With Bill Russell's help, Shaq and Kobe make peace

Bill Russell still has a big impact on the NBA.

Following the Hall of Famer's advice, Shaquille O'Neal made peace with Kobe Bryant before their Martin Luther King Day game.

"I had orders from the great Bill Russell," O'Neal said. "Me and him were talking in Seattle the other day, and he was telling me how rivalries should be. I asked him if he ever disliked anybody he played against, and he told me, `No, never,' and he told me that I should shake Kobe Bryant's hand and let bygones be bygones and bury the hatchet.

"Today is a day of peace. Dr. Martin Luther King was an ambassador of peace. So when I talked to Mr. Russell, he told me he said that him and (Wilt) Chamberlain spoke once or twice a week before he passed away. And even though people thought they hated each other, there was nothing but love there."

O'Neal first approached Bryant before the game to congratulate him on his daughter's birth and the impending birth of a second child.

Later, the longtime protagonists shook hands, embraced briefly and talked at center court when the team captains and game officials met. They hugged again before the opening tipoff as the fans at Staples Center voiced their approval.