Shaq out for season!!! (Miami Herald) I just saw this http://miami.dolem.com/mld/miamiherald/sports/10968685.htm BREAKING NEWS Shaq Done for the Season BY HAIME GONZALEZ hgonzalez@herald.com MIAMI - It's tough to see a player go down with a season ending (and possibly career ending) injury. That's what Heat fans had to endure while watching a game against the Chicago Bulls. In the opening minutes of Tuesdays contest, Shaquille O'Neal went crashing to the floor and immediately grabbed his left knee. O'Neal spent about two minutes on the floor before finally getting up with the help of teammates. He walked off the floor under his own power but put little weight on his left leg. The injury was initially diagnosed as a strained left knee, but further evaluations revealed the true extent of the injury, and the Heat could be forced to play a lot more games like the 105-101 overtime loss to Chicago. Team physicians confirmed that Shaquille O'Neal has suffered a torn ligament in his left knee, which will force Shaq out for the remainder of the season. O'Neal was not immediately available for comment, although a press conference is scheduled later today which will officially announce the Heats' loss. Dwane Wade, the Heats' other star player, was available for comment and offered comfort to both O'Neal and Heat fans. 'The next few months will be a challenge for us all and we hope for the speedy recovery of our big guy in the middle. Times like this can bring a team closer together, so I want the fans to know that we see it through these tough times and still go on as expected. Shaq has been a big part of our success, but we feel that our level of play has been taken to another level, so we expect to continue our winning ways. With some luck, Shaq could return late in the playoffs. Get well soon, big guy.'' Wade said. Despite Wade's encouraging message, the injury could keep the Heat from going very far in the playoffs, should O'Neal's knee be fully recovered in time for the conference finals. For now, Heat fans will have to hope that their other shining star can carry the team in a way similar to last years amazing playoff run.
Damn the more I think about it the sadder it is especially if its career ending. I guess thinking about Shaq going down for good or at least ending his MDP era suprisingly makes me feel bad. I thought I didnt really like Shaq but now that this news breaks I think its a sad day for the NBA.
this is the latest offical report on yahoo Shaq out until after Heat return to Miami February 23, 2005 INDIANAPOLIS (AP) -- Shaquille O'Neal won't play before his injured knee is examined by doctors in Miami. The Heat ruled the center out of Wednesday night's game against the Indiana Pacers, and spokesman Tim Donovan said O'Neal would fly home with the team and have an MRI taken Thursday. His status for the Heat's next home game on Saturday against Orlando has not yet been determined. ADVERTISEMENT O'Neal left the game against Chicago on Tuesday night after landing awkwardly early in the first quarter. He fell onto Bulls forward Othella Harrington, after going up for an alley-oop pass from Dwyane Wade, and stayed on the floor for several minutes -- holding his knee. He was then helped off the floor and into the locker room. O'Neal played only two minutes against Chicago and didn't score. O'Neal, who missed a game in December due to a calf injury, is averaging 22.7 points and 10.4 rebounds in his first season with the Heat. Updated on Wednesday, Feb 23, 2005 2:23 pm EST Email to a Friend | View Popular
The Story Is Fake I was totally fooled by it. However I keep checking ESPN and I cant find anything on it. I think its a fake. If it is I'm sorry for posting it.
Well this might not be true but I think they are saying he is going to miss significant time, regardless of the results of the examination.
http://miami.dolem.com/mld/miamiherald/sports/10968685.htm It probably is a fake story, the real Miami Herald website doesn't have that dolem before the dot com.
This story has to be fake. If his knee was damaged that bad, he wouldn't have walked off the court yesterday.
Damn... The East is for graps now. The Heat are still a good team with a very good coach but Shaq makes that team so much better. From contender to pretender.
http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/sports/10968680.htm?1c the real story... Posted on Wed, Feb. 23, 2005 BULLS 105, HEAT 101 (OT) An upset, and a scare for Shaq BY ISRAEL GUTIERREZ igutierrez@herald.com CHICAGO - When the big fella went down, the big picture got pretty murky. Shaquille O'Neal crashed to the floor in the opening minutes Tuesday, grabbed his left knee and shot an alarmed look at the Heat bench, suddenly making the game against the Bulls a secondary concern. The injury was diagnosed as a strained left knee, but further evaluations will reveal the true extent of the injury, and the Heat could be forced to play a lot more games like the 105-101 overtime loss to Chicago. O'Neal left the Heat locker room after the game without commenting about his injury but walked with a pronounced limp. Before he left, though, he passed along a message to his teammate Damon Jones. 'He said, `I'll be OK,' period,'' Jones said. Despite O'Neal's encouraging message, the injury looks like it will cause O'Neal to miss some significant time. The play occurred just 1 minute 35 seconds into the game, as Dwyane Wade drove into the lane and drew the Bulls defense. Wade lobbed a pass that O'Neal jumped to catch, but on his way down, his right foot landed on Othella Harrington, who had fallen in a collision with Wade. That left O'Neal to land with all his weight on his left leg, and he crumpled to the floor immediately, reached for his left knee and motioned to the bench that a timeout be called. After Luol Deng scored on the other end, the Heat called a timeout, and team trainer Ron Culp tended to O'Neal, who hesitated to straighten his left leg. O'Neal spent about two minutes on the floor before finally getting up with the help of teammates. He walked off the floor under his own power but put little weight on his left leg. X-RAYS NEGATIVE X-rays taken at the United Center were negative, but X-rays rarely reveal damage to ligaments in the knee. O'Neal did travel with the team to Indianapolis for its game against the Pacers tonight, and it's likely O'Neal will have an MRI exam taken either today in Indianapolis or Thursday in Miami to determine the extent of the damage. With O'Neal out, the Heat turned to Michael Doleac at center, but like Udonis Haslem, Doleac was in foul trouble and was limited to 21 minutes. With Christian Laettner on the injured list, Heat coach Stan Van Gundy turned to seldom-used center Wang Zhi-Zhi for important minutes. Wang delivered in his most meaningful 19 minutes of the season, scoring 11 points on 5-of-6 shooting and adding two rebounds. The Heat needed all the help it could get, not only because of O'Neal's injury but because Wade was also playing through discomfort. During the second quarter, Wade's left knee and shin were being attended to as he sat on the baseline. Wade, whose left leg was covered in black protective gear, was limping throughout the game. Still, the Heat had a seven-point lead with 3:41 remaining in the fourth quarter. That's when Bulls rookie Ben Gordon took over. With 1:07 left, Gordon banked in a three that narrowed the Heat's lead to 90-89. Gordon followed with another three-pointer after a defensive switch left Haslem covering the rookie. The three was Gordon's 11th point of the fourth quarter and gave the Bulls a 92-90 lead with 39.2 seconds remaining. Jones hit a three-pointer with 33 seconds remaining, but the Heat forced Chicago into a 24-second violation on the ensuing possession, giving the Heat 3.6 seconds left to tie the score. Shandon Anderson inbounded the ball to Jones, who took a couple dribbles and pulled up for a 17-footer that never reached the rim. Eddie Jones caught the airball and banked it in over his head as the clock expired. The referees ruled the shot was good, and replays confirmed the call, sending the game to overtime. GORDON EXCELS Gordon, though, started the overtime session the same way he ended regulation, hitting a three-pointer, a runner over Haslem and another three-pointer to score the first eight points of the quarter. It wasn't until Wade hit a pull-up three-pointer with 1:24 remaining that the Heat got on the board in overtime. After finally forcing Gordon into a miss, Eddie Jones knocked down another three that brought the Heat to within two at 100-98. Trailing by three with 13.2 seconds remaining, the Heat had one last chance to tie the score, but Damon Jones missed a three over Tyson Chandler. The Heat players and coaches were still upset about the loss after the game, but players did acknowledge the possibility of playing without O'Neal for a long stretch. ''We've got to do it as a team,'' Eddie Jones said. ``We have to go out and get everybody involved. We're losing a big part with Shaquille, and it's going to be one of those [styles] where it's more of a perimeter game than a post-up game. We just have to continue to play defense the way we play. ``If you lose one of your big players, you just have to go into each game and just play even harder and give more of an effort.'' His injury could mean a more meaningful role for Alonzo Mourning, who is expected to sign with the Heat on Friday and be available for the back-to-back games against the Magic. After missing more than two months of basketball, Mourning is not in ideal basketball shape, however, which would likely still limit his minutes. Laettner, who was eligible to come off the injured list Tuesday, will likely be activated today despite a sore back. O'Neal has missed a total of 31 games in his NBA career with left knee injuries. In the 2002-03 season, he missed three games with a sore left knee, and in the 1996-97 season, he missed 28 games with a hyperextended left knee. O'Neal, who went scoreless in the game after playing only two minutes, had reached double figures in scoring in 92 consecutive games.
If you go to http://www.dolem.com/ it looks like a personal web site under construction, so the article that was posted is probably fake. There is a bit of truth to it, though. Shaq did go down with and injured knee. The extent of the injury is not yet known, and he is scheduled for an MRI on Thursday. (source: USA today ) -- droxford
http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news;_y...0aA--?slug=ap-heat-onealout&prov=ap&type=lgns Shaq out until after Heat return to Miami February 23, 2005 INDIANAPOLIS (AP) -- Shaquille O'Neal won't play before his injured knee is examined by doctors in Miami. The Heat ruled the center out of Wednesday night's game against the Indiana Pacers, and spokesman Tim Donovan said O'Neal would fly home with the team and have an MRI taken Thursday. His status for the Heat's next home game on Saturday against Orlando has not yet been determined. O'Neal left the game against Chicago on Tuesday night after landing awkwardly early in the first quarter. He fell onto Bulls forward Othella Harrington, after going up for an alley-oop pass from Dwyane Wade, and stayed on the floor for several minutes -- holding his knee. He was then helped off the floor and into the locker room. O'Neal played only two minutes against Chicago and didn't score. O'Neal, who missed a game in December due to a calf injury, is averaging 22.7 points and 10.4 rebounds in his first season with the Heat.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/7014525/ INDIANAPOLIS - Miami Heat center Shaquille O’Neal will be out the rest of the season with torn knee ligament, the Miami Herald reported Wednesday.
