DONE DEAL: Shaq to Cleveland for Sasha Pavlovic and Ben Wallace/ EDIT: Villanueva next???

[doublejs07]

I know he's 37, but I'm baffled that his value is so low after averaging 17.8 points, making the all-star team and being named third-team All-NBA last season. I know that Phoenix is looking to dump salary, but they couldn't get one serviceable player out of the deal? Then again, it might make sense.

That the Suns simply shed salary is a firm admission that Kerr's trade for O'Neal in February 2008 was a huge blunder. Phoenix regressed in every season it had O'Neal, going from a controversial second round loss to San Antonio the season before O'Neal arrived to a first round exit in his first season with the team, to not even making the playoffs last season. The absence of Amare Stoudemire after the all-star break contributed to the Suns' struggles, but they were in trouble even with him.

You also have to be worried when you see how the Miami Heat regressed in its last two years with O'Neal. After winning the championship in 2006, the Heat lost in the first round and then traded O'Neal in the midst of a 15-win season. Anybody else noticing a trend here?

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This move is definitely a gesture from Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert and General Manager Danny Ferry to prove to James that they are going to do whatever it takes to keep the team in contention in hopes that James doesn't bolt in 2010.

While the move adds a really, really big piece to the mix, how much better does it make the Cavaliers? Yes, O'Neal can provide a big body to defend Howard but Cleveland still needs to add some bigger, athletic players to complement James on the perimeter. Will O'Neal really be able to defer to James for a full season and be happy about it? And, more importantly, will O'Neal stay healthy? He's going to have to for this deal to work.

Otherwise, the rampant speculation over LeBron's free agency will only get worse.



http://voices.washingtonpost.com/wizardsinsider/2009/06/shaq_to_cavaliers.html#more


Before anyone crowns the Cavs "champs" before the season starts, try to be realistic....Shaq alone isn't going to bolster the Cavs to thepinnacle of the NBA. They still have glaring weaknesses, and the East is more wide-open than people think.

 

[downtown43]

you guys crack me up ... does anyone watch basketball or do yall just yell kobe at the screen every time he scores? the cavs were missing one thing in these playoffs and that was an interior presence ... z couldnt guard a soul and when his jumper was off he was non existent on the offensive end ... saying the cavs need "a lot" more is !!%##!+ ******ed ... they were 2 games away from the finals last year and d howard was able to roam all around on the defensive end cuz he didnt have to worry about any big men ...

and who can Shaq guard?

and Cleveland DOES need a lot more.. they may have been 2 games from the Finals, but the truth is that Orlando would beat them every time if they replayed theseries. the Magic have a clear matchup advantage over the Cavs, and until Cleveland eliminates that advantage they can expect to continue taking Ls to Orlando.

and let's not forget that Boston was depleted this year... they would have handled the Cavs in the ECF as well.

so in reality, the Cavs are the 3rd best team in the East.. they DO have a lot of work to do if they want to be #1.

insert shaqapotomous and the whole game changes ... now, instead of the cavs guards driving and kicking for three every time, they have the chance to throw a lob to a big man ... d howard has to stay on his man a tad bit longer ... not to mention howards on ball defense is HORRIBLE and shaq will abuse his %#+ ... to say with this trade the cavs arent any closer to a ship is just stupid ...

Howard's on ball D is horrible? what is Shaq's on-ball D then?

at you thinking a 40-year old Shaq wil labuse Dwight Howard... you've got to be kidding.

 

[lazyj10]

Originally Posted by Emmanuel Goldstein

Originally Posted by FIRST B0RN

Originally Posted by yungmatt

IF Cleveland is done dealing then this means nothing

Exactly what I was thinking. Unless Boston blows team chemistry up, which might happen if they do in fact trade Rondo/ Allen; I don't see an all around better team in the East than a healthy Celtics. The Cavs need a hell of a lot more than just Snaq to win a title.

you guys crack me up ... does anyone watch basketball or do yall just yell kobe at the screen every time he scores? the cavs were missing one thing in these playoffs and that was an interior presence ... z couldnt guard a soul and when his jumper was off he was non existent on the offensive end ... saying the cavs need "a lot" more is !!%##!+ ******ed ... they were 2 games away from the finals last year and d howard was able to roam all around on the defensive end cuz he didnt have to worry about any big men ...

if you actually understand basketball you would realize how much of a liability having a "perimiter" center with no post game is on a team like the cavaliers ... guards can stick their men up by the three point line instead of having to sag down and double ... d howard didnt have to do a thing on d except wait for someone to drive and try to block their shot ...

insert shaqapotomous and the whole game changes ... now, instead of the cavs guards driving and kicking for three every time, they have the chance to throw a lob to a big man ... d howard has to stay on his man a tad bit longer ... not to mention howards on ball defense is HORRIBLE and shaq will abuse his %#+ ... to say with this trade the cavs arent any closer to a ship is just stupid ...

shaq back in the east

I'm pretty sure a guard who could actually do something in the majority of the games would have helped them just as much as a center's corpse.

 

[airalphabet]

So what happens with Z now? Him and Shaq would make the slowest frontcourt in NBA history.

 

[emmanuel goldstein]

Originally Posted by FIRST B0RN


First of all I have been watching basketball since you were swimming in your pops, junior. Secondly, I am not a Lakers or a Kobe fan. Keep having delusions of grandeur and we will see who's laughing when the Cavs aren't hoisting *#%% up come next June

damn you that old browsing nt?

im no youngin on here andyouve been watching bball for that long, that makes you damn near 30 lol ... and just to reiterate, to say the cavs need "a hell of a lot more" towin is stupid ... they were 2 games away from playing in the finals and beat a team 2 times who beat the champions 2 times ... and then, they addressed theirbiggest need ...

The Cavs were obviously unhappy with their ability to defend Dwight Howard in the playoffs and bringing Shaq into the fold should help. O'Neal averaged 17.8 points and 8.4 rebounds per game last season and made his 15th All-Star game.
The Cavaliers were also in talks with New Orleans about obtaining Tyson Chandler. If they had not made the trade for O'Neal, they would have traded for Chandler, according to a source.

The Cavs felt O'Neal was the better option because he has just one year left on his contract, and will not eat up cap space that will enable them to pursue free agents such as Chris Bosh in next summer's star-studded free agent class. Chandler, who had injury problems last postseason, has a player option for $12.7 million in 2010-2011 that he is likely to pick up.

The Cavaliers are not done making moves. They still want to re-sign power forward Anderson Varejao and they also would like to add a long, athletic wing player via free agency.

 

[jdb1523]

There's about 10 people in all of S&T who look at things objectively. I've seen maybe 3 of them in here.

 

[tmukg21]

shaq >>>> the 46th pick in this draft basically

BRON& Shaq 2010 World Champions

 

[yungmatt]

Originally Posted by Emmanuel Goldstein

Originally Posted by FIRST B0RN

Originally Posted by yungmatt

IF Cleveland is done dealing then this means nothing

Exactly what I was thinking. Unless Boston blows team chemistry up, which might happen if they do in fact trade Rondo/ Allen; I don't see an all around better team in the East than a healthy Celtics. The Cavs need a hell of a lot more than just Snaq to win a title.

you guys crack me up ... does anyone watch basketball or do yall just yell kobe at the screen every time he scores? the cavs were missing one thing in these playoffs and that was an interior presence ... z couldnt guard a soul and when his jumper was off he was non existent on the offensive end ... saying the cavs need "a lot" more is !!%##!+ ******ed ... they were 2 games away from the finals last year and d howard was able to roam all around on the defensive end cuz he didnt have to worry about any big men ...

if you actually understand basketball you would realize how much of a liability having a "perimiter" center with no post game is on a team like the cavaliers ... guards can stick their men up by the three point line instead of having to sag down and double ... d howard didnt have to do a thing on d except wait for someone to drive and try to block their shot ...

insert shaqapotomous and the whole game changes ... now, instead of the cavs guards driving and kicking for three every time, they have the chance to throw a lob to a big man ... d howard has to stay on his man a tad bit longer ... not to mention howards on ball defense is HORRIBLE and shaq will abuse his %#+ ... to say with this trade the cavs arent any closer to a ship is just stupid ...

shaq back in the east

Wow, some people on this board are dumber than I thought...

Did you watch the orlando series? The only thing they were missing was an interior presence???? Really???

Dwight was NOT the main reason Orlando won that series genious...

You dont remember them not having any perimeter defenders or and 2nd scoring options being their biggest problem?

 

[airalphabet]

I still think the move to make for the Cavs was to trade for Richard Jefferson. The Spurs basically got him for scraps.

 

[Chester McFloppy]

Yep, I knew they'd show up eventually.

Bookmarked for future use.

 

[bhzmafia14]

Originally Posted by yungmatt

Originally Posted by Emmanuel Goldstein

Originally Posted by FIRST B0RN

Originally Posted by yungmatt

IF Cleveland is done dealing then this means nothing

Exactly what I was thinking. Unless Boston blows team chemistry up, which might happen if they do in fact trade Rondo/ Allen; I don't see an all around better team in the East than a healthy Celtics. The Cavs need a hell of a lot more than just Snaq to win a title.

you guys crack me up ... does anyone watch basketball or do yall just yell kobe at the screen every time he scores? the cavs were missing one thing in these playoffs and that was an interior presence ... z couldnt guard a soul and when his jumper was off he was non existent on the offensive end ... saying the cavs need "a lot" more is !!%##!+ ******ed ... they were 2 games away from the finals last year and d howard was able to roam all around on the defensive end cuz he didnt have to worry about any big men ...

if you actually understand basketball you would realize how much of a liability having a "perimiter" center with no post game is on a team like the cavaliers ... guards can stick their men up by the three point line instead of having to sag down and double ... d howard didnt have to do a thing on d except wait for someone to drive and try to block their shot ...

insert shaqapotomous and the whole game changes ... now, instead of the cavs guards driving and kicking for three every time, they have the chance to throw a lob to a big man ... d howard has to stay on his man a tad bit longer ... not to mention howards on ball defense is HORRIBLE and shaq will abuse his %#+ ... to say with this trade the cavs arent any closer to a ship is just stupid ...

shaq back in the east

Wow, some people on this board are dumber than I thought...

Did you watch the orlando series? The only thing they were missing was an interior presence???? Really???

Dwight was NOT the main reason Orlando won that series genious...

You dont remember them not having any perimeter defenders or and 2nd scoring options being their biggest problem?

Exactly.

No consistency outside of Lebron for Cleveland scoring wise along with that small %#! backcourt with Williams and West. It just wasn't enough and ifCleveland wants to compete for a ring next year, they have to address those issues. The three way deal that would've brought them Jamison could have beenbetter for them. I guess they couldn't get it done though.

 

[hugebird]

This is going to be must see TV next year.

Man, if you thought Cleveland got abused on the pick and roll against Orlando, throw Shaq in the equation and it will be hilarious.

Watching Nash and Shaq defend the pick and roll (using the term "defend" loosely), is one of the funniest things in sports.

 

[emmanuel goldstein]

lmao ... naw the heat regressing had nothing to do with d wade hurt ...................................................... naw, the suns being molded for therun and gun and then all of a sudden inserting a post up big man had nothing to do with the suns regressing ... just delete that article you posted up theredoublejs youre better than that ....

I'm pretty sure a guard who could actually do something in the majority of the games would have helped them just as much as a center's corpse.
mo williams epicly failed in the playoffs ... let me know how many playoff series hes been in and get back to me on that one ... when he wasinterviewed he said he was overwhelmed at the atmosphere and what it takes to win in the playoffs ... the cavs guards would be fine if they had someone whocould actually post up and bring their defenders down even a foot ...

and as for downtown, we are talking about this not being an upgrade for the cavs ... tell me shaq isnt better than big z, ben and varejao ... ... ... ... ...shaq will wear d howard out, or at least make him work a little bit ...

 

[Los Angeles]

Do you guys honestly think Mike Brown can handle "coaching" Shaq?

I'm also bookmarking this thread for future use, just like "Mo Williams is an all-star thread"

 

[lazyj10]

Originally Posted by Emmanuel Goldstein

lmao ... naw the heat regressing had nothing to do with d wade hurt ...................................................... naw, the suns being molded for the run and gun and then all of a sudden inserting a post up big man had nothing to do with the suns regressing ... just delete that article you posted up there doublejs youre better than that ....

I'm pretty sure a guard who could actually do something in the majority of the games would have helped them just as much as a center's corpse.

mo williams epicly failed in the playoffs ... let me know how many playoff series hes been in and get back to me on that one ... when he was interviewed he said he was overwhelmed at the atmosphere and what it takes to win in the playoffs ... the cavs guards would be fine if they had someone who could actually post up and bring their defenders down even a foot ...

and as for downtown, we are talking about this not being an upgrade for the cavs ... tell me shaq isnt better than big z, ben and varejao ... ... ... ... ... shaq will wear d howard out, or at least make him work a little bit ...
I don't give a *+!# how man he's been in. Team was rolling just fine till the ECF...the bench issue for CLE needs to be addressed. Ididn't say they need TONs of help, Shaq is a upgrade over Z, but let's not start the Finals parade just yet. Where's the depth on this team?

A center wasn't going to help Mo or anyone else actually shoot the ball. Go small and post Lebron up and kick out. Have Lebron drive and kick, no reasonthey can't knock down open shots. Get a veteran guard whose been in the playoffs before then. Can be had for cheap and will still be an upgrade on thatCLE bench.

 

[emmanuel goldstein]

Did you watch the orlando series? The only thing they were missing was an interior presence???? Really???

Dwight was NOT the main reason Orlando won that series genious...

You dont remember them not having any perimeter defenders or and 2nd scoring options being their biggest problem?
i dont even know why i address people like you but im bored at work so i will ... think about what d howard did to cleveland ... ... ... ... ...then look at what you wrote ... ... ... ... now apologize ...

all you heard from van gundy was how he didnt realize "how good a passer" d howard was ... i think i heard him say it 48 times in one game ... to sayhoward didnt dominate that series is LAUGHABLE ... just because he didnt drop 50 every night doesnt mean he didnt dominate, big men like d howard CONTROL thegame ... the reason why their was no perimiter d was because the cavs guards had to help every time howard touched the ball ... add to that the fact he didnthave to work on the defensive end AT ALL and you should get my drift ...

 

[downtown43]

 

[lazyj10]

Originally Posted by Emmanuel Goldstein

Did you watch the orlando series? The only thing they were missing was an interior presence???? Really???

Dwight was NOT the main reason Orlando won that series genious...

You dont remember them not having any perimeter defenders or and 2nd scoring options being their biggest problem?

i dont even know why i address people like you but im bored at work so i will ... think about what d howard did to cleveland ... ... ... ... ... then look at what you wrote ... ... ... ... now apologize ...

all you heard from van gundy was how he didnt realize "how good a passer" d howard was ... i think i heard him say it 48 times in one game ... to say howard didnt dominate that series is LAUGHABLE ... just because he didnt drop 50 every night doesnt mean he didnt dominate, big men like d howard CONTROL the game ... the reason why their was no perimiter d was because the cavs guards had to help every time howard touched the ball ... add to that the fact he didnt have to work on the defensive end AT ALL and you should get my drift ...

It didn't really take him to be Jason Kidd out there when CLE's perimeter (and overall) defense was terrible.

 

[doublejs07]

Originally Posted by Emmanuel Goldstein

lmao ... naw the heat regressing had nothing to do with d wade hurt ...................................................... naw, the suns being molded for the run and gun and then all of a sudden inserting a post up big man had nothing to do with the suns regressing ... just delete that article you posted up there doublejs youre better than that ....

I'm pretty sure a guard who could actually do something in the majority of the games would have helped them just as much as a center's corpse.

mo williams epicly failed in the playoffs ... let me know how many playoff series hes been in and get back to me on that one ... when he was interviewed he said he was overwhelmed at the atmosphere and what it takes to win in the playoffs ... the cavs guards would be fine if they had someone who could actually post up and bring their defenders down even a foot ...

and as for downtown, we are talking about this not being an upgrade for the cavs ... tell me shaq isnt better than big z, ben and varejao ... ... ... ... ... shaq will wear d howard out, or at least make him work a little bit ...
Why are you making excuses for Mo Williams and the rest of the Cavs? They are a veteran-laden team, and there is NO excuse for Mo not to show up. If he acutally said he was overwhelmed at the atmosphere and what it takes to win, then he's more bunz than anyone in the NBA. I wouldn't want a guylike that within 100 feet of my team. If anything, the Cavs had more playoff experience than the Magic, so that debunks your theory right there.

and like Sura said:

Man, if you thought Cleveland got abused on the pick and roll against Orlando, throw Shaq in the equation and it will be hilarious.

Watching Nash and Shaq defend the pick and roll (using the term "defend" loosely), is one of the funniest things in sports.


If you honestly think that the ONLY reason the Cavs lost was because of a lack of a inside presence, then you are really mistaken. The Cavs skated to the ECFplaying inferior teams. It's going to be more of the same thing next year if something isn't done to give Lebron more reliable help. Shaq IS betterthan Z...but, he isn't the missing piece to the puzzle that will not only get the Cavs to the finals, but also have them as champs.

 

[kingjames23]

http://twitter.com/CV31

 

[CP1708]

Originally Posted by outacontrol music

Shaq been on a UFC type workout plan

And sticking to his diet.



Should be interesting to see the shape he comes in at.





Shaq would provide inside offense and defense to a team that already posted 66 wins the previous year and would team up with a player who carried bench players to the Finals in 07.




edit: Nice to see the Laker sigs now checking in....

So now that he's a Cav all of a sudden he's in shape per you huh?

38 year old Shaq is the key to a chip huh? Pick and roll over and over and over and over with a slow old Shaq out there near the 3 point line? Good luck withthat.

Shaq AND Z on the same team???? Bye bye any sort of speed.

Shaq and Bron free throw shooting?

No homecourt for the Cavs next year, no way Shaq plays 80 games AND THEN the playoffs.

This has disaster written ALL over it.

 

[yungmatt]

Damn dude your even more clueless than I thought at 1st

 

[doublejs07]

Originally Posted by CP1708

Originally Posted by outacontrol music

Shaq been on a UFC type workout plan

And sticking to his diet.



Should be interesting to see the shape he comes in at.





Shaq would provide inside offense and defense to a team that already posted 66 wins the previous year and would team up with a player who carried bench players to the Finals in 07.




edit: Nice to see the Laker sigs now checking in....

So now that he's a Cav all of a sudden he's in shape per you huh?

38 year old Shaq is the key to a chip huh? Pick and roll over and over and over and over with a slow old Shaq out there near the 3 point line? Good luck with that.

Shaq AND Z on the same team???? Bye bye any sort of speed.

Shaq and Bron free throw shooting?

No homecourt for the Cavs next year, no way Shaq plays 80 games AND THEN the playoffs.

This has disaster written ALL over it.

 

[westcoastsfinest]

shaq to the cavs isnt gonna stop Lebron from thinking about leaving for new york...shaq is a short term plan...while Lebron wanted a player that can complimenthim in the long run

 

[emmanuel goldstein]

Originally Posted by LazyJ10


It didn't really take him to be Jason Kidd out there when CLE's perimeter (and overall) defense was terrible.

i can dig it ... but shaq helps that because the guards dont have to help AS MUCH ...

Damn dude your even more clueless than I thought at 1st

nice rebuttal ...