One thing that became evidently after Shaquille O’Neal sat down to give Cleveland a formal hello was that the upcoming NBA season won’t be a dull one.
The Big Diesel arrived with sense of humor in tow and didn’t disappoint in that area, but he also made it completely clear that while there will be fun to be had in the upcoming season, this is just as much about business as well.
Sporting a black suit, with pink shirt and matching tie O’Neal knows that GM Danny Ferry traded for him to help get this team over the hump this season.
”Expectations are very high and we want them to be high,” O’Neal said.
When asked about future matchups, O’Neal said that’s not a big issue for him.
”I’m not going to waste this year talking about possible matchups,” he said before going on the record and saying facing the Lakers could be intriguing.
But talk of the here and now, didn’t stop him from dropping hints about the future. In his eyes, he’s got three years left in him and said so, in the process sounding open to the idea of extending with the Cavs.
Given that even on the downside of his career that he averaged 17.8 points and 8.4 rebounds per game, there’s little reason to dispute that.
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
Hey George-you nailed it by noting the intensity of Shaq. He has fun but he definitely knows how to get it done when it counts and that may be the piece Lebron is missing. I don’t see how anyone can think this trade doesn’t help the Cavs (Wallace was done and Sasha is addition by subtraction). It is really a steal.
Dave:
Thanks for the comment. Been down since the end of the playoffs with a herniated disc in my neck and a pinched nerve.
I think Shaq sniffs another ring, truthfully. I also believe he knew that wasn’t gooing to happen in Phoenix. We will see how he comes into training camp.
He made similar statements when he arrived in Miami and delivered the Heat to the Promised Land, so we shall see.