LOS ANGELES -- Shaquille O'Neal could soon be shooting scenes as well as baskets.

CBS is developing a television series about a high school basketball team and O'Neal, the 7-foot-1 center for the three-time NBA champion Los Angeles Lakers, is expected to be part of the pilot episode, network spokeswoman Nancy Carr said Friday.

O'Neal might also make occasional guest appearances in the series, which could be considered for the 2002-03 season, Carr said.

The drama focuses on a professional basketball player, an O'Neal teammate, who takes a school coaching job after an auto accident ends his playing career.

The show is still being shaped and it's uncertain whether O'Neal will be shown as part of the Lakers or a fictional team, said writer-producer Judith McCreary.

Although O'Neal won't play the main character he's investing time and effort in the project, McCreary said Friday.

''He's working really hard. He's been taking acting lessons,'' she said.

O'Neal, whose credits include the films ''Kazaam'' and ''He Got Game,'' has played fictional roles and also appeared as himself.

The pilot will be written by McCreary, who was a supervising producer on the Showtime series ''The Hoop Life'' and is co-executive producer on the NBC drama ''Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.''

Whether the series makes CBS' schedule will be decided next spring.