Monday, December 31, 2001 - Anyone who has watched Los Angeles Lakers center Shaquille O'Neal pound his way on the basketball court might have difficulty finding the beauty in the NBA's game.

However, Stu Jackson, the NBA's senior vice president of basketball operations, contends some rule changes for the 2001-02 season have made it "a more open and prettier game."

Jackson especially is pleased that a change in rules that allows for zone defense basically has eliminated the one-on-one isolation play. When zone defenses were illegal, teams would clear a side of the court so that a dominant player could work one on one against a single defender. The other eight players stood and watched, defenders glued to the player they were guarding in order to avert an illegal defense call.