Slowing down my arse! 35 and still knocking doors down, carrying Miami without their supposed best player, Dwyane Wade. When he dies, his headstone will have one word on it: "Winner". I haven't seen a player since MJ that has affected winning more than Shaq has. He's leaving the doubters with ZERO ammunition against him. He's the only constant, and winning is his Robin. I would have to say top 10 player all time, regardless of position.
I've been a big fan of the Big Oaf for a while, despite the times I hated him for some of the dumb things he says (and no, not the comedic stuff). But wow, I would've never thought he'd be putting up these kind of numbers. I've seen a couple of games of his and he seems to have slimmed down a lot. That has to help.
his body only allows him keep this kind of intensity for less than 10 games. i put my bet on he'll be in a big slump a few games later.
The only knock I have against Shaq is that he never really commited himself to off-season conditioning/staying healthy... he relied more on his god given size/girth that carried him for 8-9 years, but eventually a player needs to start commiting to conditioning/training or the body will fail him (sets apart Hakeem and Jordan as guys who did do that). Shaq could have ran away with the "best center ever" argument if he had a hint of the self-motivation that drove Jordan and Hakeem... instead of the "i'm motivated only when a team trades me, or the other star player is out."
Isn't it funny how the Heat keep on winning without Wade? Don't kid yourself, Shaq is the reason the Heat rolled through the East and beat the Mavs last season. Case in point, Stack got a bloody nose the first time he tried to drive the lane and rarely came in to the lane again. Wade had a very good series offensively but it was Shaq, being constantly double teamed, who opened every thing up for him and the other guys. There is a reason Shaq has been to the finals with every team he has been on.
Cuban could have traded Dirk for Shaq, it has been repoirted numerous times. If Miami beats Dallas again in the Finals, Cuban will have made possibly the two worst GM moves in history of NBA. 1. Refusing to re-sign Nash and instead giving his money to Ericka (and best center in the WNBA) Dampier 2. Rather than trading Dirk for Shaq, keeping Dirk, then seeing Shaq beat him twice in trhe Finals after he let him go to Miami.
Considering your assumption is that Dallas goes to the NBA finals 2 straight years... and that Dallas will have won between 63ish and 70 games this season.. I don't think you can say Cuban made anything close to the "two worst GM moves" ever. WTF? The guy would have built a team that was awesome in the reg. season and, under your assumption, had 2 straight shots at winning it all. I'm not a fan of him or Dallas by any means... but you don't call those bad moves
Uh, yeah you do. Because they would have won 2 titles instead of just making it to the Finals twice. This is like every time someone sayd the Pistons made the right move because they won the title....... BS I am sure they feel they made the right move because they won the title while they watch Wade and Bosh playing and realize they could have had them. It is absolute BS to make these types of arguments. You have to be selfish as an owner and GM like Pat Riley is or you do not ever make it to the real top. Jordan and Phil Jackson were also selfish. Cuban and the Pistons are not selfish just like the Rockets. Pat Riley makes the comment over and over that the only teams thwt win the title are the ones that go to any length to get it, and the only ones that win more than one are the ones that keep doing that even after winning the first. The Rockets are just like Cuban and the Pistons. You have to throw all other rational aside if you want the big time winning. Your argument brings rationale into it and automatically makes it wrong. If you want to just plain and simply win it's the same as picking guys in a pick up game.
Donnie Nelson is the GM of the Mavs, not Cuban. Cuban is just the money guy. But the Mavs didn't want to give up Dirk for an again Shaq. Shaq is amazing in his old age. Nash hasn't led his team to even the Finals yet so that move is really a non factor.
I've been a huge Shaq fan all along. I love Yao but Shaq's still the best center in the NBA when he's healthy and cares. He's proving that right now or at least making a good case. And dude's funny despite that fact he mocked my favorite player Yao.
Yao isn't innocent either. He compared his horrible shooting of late to Shaq's poor FT shooting. Amongst players I'm sure they don't care. They all know its just joshing but the media always has to make a big deal out of nothing.
Shaq was a major part of the Heat making the finals, but in the finals it was all Wade. Miami's team actually played much better with Zo in there instead of Shaq because they did not try to force it through Shaq and could better match up with the Mavs quickness. Look at Shaq's stats, or look at his +/-, Wade was absolutely the key guy in beating the Mavs. He also was the key guy in beating Det, but Shaq at least was a solid #2 guy in that series. But what Shaq is doing is impressive, and he is showing he still can be one of the 10 most impactfull players in the league. If they get Wade back they are still the team to beat in the East and give everyone (including the top 5 Western teams) matchup problems.
Great stuff, but at 35 he won't be able to keep it up very long -- I hope he does though great for the NBA.
Actually, if they get Wade back, I expect Shaq to go back to his form in last year's finals. Shaq is still a freakish talent. But he works hard only when he feels he absolutely has to, like right now.
Dude, the Mavericks are going to win 70 games this year. Cuban's fine. There's no guarantee that Shaq on the Mavericks would come out of the west anyway.
LOL, talk about revisionist history! Wade was one of the closest things to a one-man show in NBA Finals history. Oh, but Shaq is playing well now so that must change everything, huh?
The problem is regardless of how hard you keep yourself in shape a person Shaqs size can't handle years of 90+ games a season. He has to pace himself. You can't be an elite marathon runner when you have sprinters body. Shaq is a sprinter and one of the best of all time.
