Shaq to Suns? Lakers Probably Can't Believe Their Luck
This is the absolutely insane trade the Phoenix Suns are about to make:
Shawn Marion and Marcus Banks for ... Shaquille O'Neal.
Man, the Lakers' Pau Gasol acquisition clearly has driven some Western Conference teams nuts.
Shaq is so far down the backside of his career ... to get back to the zenith of his abilities (like, 1999-2000), he would have to scale Mt. Everest. From sea level. That's how far down he has come.
The Big Has-Been is hurt now, has been hurt off and on for years, and is averaging 14.2 points and 7.8 rebounds per game. (Which makes him, oh, Zydrunas Ilgauskas, numbers-wise, except without the jumper.) He will be 36 in a month and is owed $20 million each of the next two years.
And if his decrepitude as a player and enormous contract weren't enough to warn off the Suns ... how about this? Shaq in the Suns offense is like Brian Boitano in the Super Bowl. A horrible fit.
The Suns have thrived since the return of Steve Nash by pushing the tempo, shooting first and asking questions later, and outscoring people.
And now they're going to add the league's slowest player (aside from, maybe, Yao Ming) to their roster? A guy who can't run, can't jump yet lives in a fantasy world in which he should still be the center of attention?
And how is that going to work, exactly? Shaq won't even be over the half-court line before the Suns shoot the ball. He may as well just stay in the lane at the defensive end and take up space -- his one remaining "skill."
Plus, the Suns give up Shawn Marion, a 20 and 10 guy. OK, he's been making little protests of unhappiness, but he actually FITS what the Suns try to do. He's athletic and fast and ... well, he's a guy made to play with Nash and Amare Stoudemire.
Shaq so clearly is not.
What the Suns appear to be doing is trying to get more physical, no doubt concerned that their interior defense is a shambles. And perhaps they think that going to a contender will inject a dollop of energy into O'Neal, who is going through the motions in Miami -- which may be more about his decline than his attitude.
Stoudemire then becomes a power forward, more befitting his body type, and Boris Diaw becomes the 3 ... and, well, I guess they hope playing four-on-five on offense (unless they're willing wait for Shaq to haul his goo to the other end) is worth having an anchor in the key on defense. I guess.
To me, it seems more like the Last Act of a Desperate Franchise. "We couldn't win it with these guys the last two years, how are we gonna win it now when the Lakers are better and Utah is better? ... We gotta do something!"
Panic. Best record in the West, and they make this trade. Nutty. But it makes them less competitive, so the Lakers should be applauding it. Now they need worry about one less serious competitor between them and the NBA Finals.
Note: The Lakers play at Phoenix on Feb. 20. Should be fun.