Shaq being accountable!?

[Reality]

While generally thought of as being in better physical shape, thus the good year he is having, could reasonableness, reality and light be penetrating the fat mass surrounding Shaqs brain?

Altho the writer entitles this article "O'Neal Gets in a Few New Digs", I see it as for the 1st time in history Shraq is taking some basketball accountability and instead of 100% blaming others he is admitting at least partial fault.  See bold print and tell me if you agree.
While still spoken in his usual full of himself tone, and condescending tone towoards Bryant and Penny Hardaway, it's nonetheless the Big Apestotle semi owning up.  I say look out for the Heat if this attitude keeps up.  Of course if any adversity comes the Heats way, will Shraq then be accountable?  Who knows, pleasantly surprise us....
 
By Mike Bresnahan, Times Staff Writer

WASHINGTON — The Lakers and Miami Heat play for the second and final time this season Thursday in Miami, giving Shaquille O'Neal another opportunity to muse about things Laker-related, past and present.

O'Neal, averaging 22.5 points and 10.3 rebounds as Miami fights for the league's best record, turned a judgmental eye Monday toward Laker teams of the recent past and talked about how his relationship with second-year Heat guard Dwyane Wade has differed than those with Kobe Bryant and, earlier in his career, Penny Hardaway.

O'Neal said he felt different with the Heat than he did his last few seasons with the Lakers.

"I enjoy the fact that I'm playing with a bunch of guys that play the game the way it's supposed to be played," O'Neal told reporters. "This is like the first time … where I could say I've been on a good team where everybody was on the same page."

O'Neal also said he and Wade were on the same page, if not paragraph.

"He's taught me a lot and I learned a lot from all my children that I've tutored," O'Neal said. "I've made a couple of mistakes with my first two, so I'm the type that can sit back and say, 'OK, I made a mistake. I shouldn't have done it this way. I should have done it the other way.' But me and him don't have that problem because of what I learned with my first two. It's such a good relationship because I know that I can't handle him like I handled the other two."

O'Neal said the current status of the Lakers hasn't occupied much of his time.

"I've got five beautiful children, wife, I'm living a great life, I live on the water," he said. "When you have that view [from home], nothing to complain about."
 

[westkoast]

Im buying a lottery ticket today....thought Id never see the day

[Guest_Randy]

Oh please, some things NEVER change:

"He's taught me a lot and I learned a lot from all my children that I've tutored," O'Neal said.

You don't see the incredible ARROGANCE in that statement?  Shaq is an adult and Penny, Kobe and now Wade, are all children.  Stupid!  Shaq isn't any more guilty than Penny, Kobe OR PJ in the previous messes.  

There are a several things that impress me about Shaq:

1)  Nobody gives more money than Shaq to charities.

2)  I doubt if ANYONE in the NBA gives more TIME than Shaq does (impresses me more than millionaries giving of their excess).  

However, this article WOULD have impressed me IF Shaq would have spoken about Wade as a teammate -- not as a underling but as an equal.  Shaq seems to think that everyone has to be beneath him rather than accepting that he can have equals.  It's REALLY hard to treat someone like a real friend if you think they are less than you are.  

Why couldn't he have said "teammate" instead of "child?"  I would have been more impressed!

[westkoast]

Considering Wade is pulling more than his fair share of weight I agree Randy.  He is on the court more, he is scoring more, he is assisting more.....When do you become a teammate and stop being called a child?  

Calling yourself someones big brother is one thing but to call them a child is another..

[rickortreat]

Very apt Randy.  This is one of Shaq's BIG problems.  He doesn't treat other players as equals.  I don't think the players who actually CAN shoot free-throws look doen on him.  Or even the players who actually get fouls called on THEM, as oppossed to fatso who gets away with everything because NBA refs treat him as being larger than the GAME!

But then again, Shaq isn't the sharpest tack in the box.  So many people feed his ego that it's hard for him to act like a NORMAL human being, or think like one.

If there was no Basketball, I wonder what kind of job there is that he could actually do!  Village idiot doesn't pay too well these days.  

[Derek Bodner]

I agree with Randy 100% on this.

[Guest_Randy]

Very apt Randy.  This is one of Shaq's BIG problems.  He doesn't treat other players as equals.  I don't think the players who actually CAN shoot free-throws look doen on him.  Or even the players who actually get fouls called on THEM, as oppossed to fatso who gets away with everything because NBA refs treat him as being larger than the GAME!

But then again, Shaq isn't the sharpest tack in the box.  So many people feed his ego that it's hard for him to act like a NORMAL human being, or think like one.

If there was no Basketball, I wonder what kind of job there is that he could actually do!  Village idiot doesn't pay too well these days.

Rick, still disagree with you about foul calls and Shaq -- Shaq is the TOUGHEST guy in the league to call fouls for or on.  He gets hit (and hit hard) on almost every play -- and dishes out that punishment as well.  His backdown move, while technically illegal is use by EVERY post player in the game -- the difference is that he is SOO big and strong that he can dislodge players.  I never will forget when Stacy Augmen did that to Kobe in the playoffs -- everyone laughed and thought it was great that Augmen was punking Kobe but when Shaq did the EXACT same thing people started screaming foul.  I would rather see a finesse game but I just don't see that happening.

And as a side note, I could almost understand Shaq calling Penny and Kobe children (although I'm not sure that Shaq has a lot of room to talk) but calling Wade a child -- I haven't seen or heard about Wade being an immature spoiled brat -- at least yet!  I really doubt that Wade takes much offense to Shaq's comments though -- he is probably used to Shaq speaking without thinking by now!

[Reality]

Oh please, some things NEVER change:

"He's taught me a lot and I learned a lot from all my children that I've tutored," O'Neal said.

You don't see the incredible ARROGANCE in that statement?  Shaq is an adult and Penny, Kobe and now Wade, are all children.  Stupid!  Shaq isn't any more guilty than Penny, Kobe OR PJ in the previous messes.  

Why couldn't he have said "teammate" instead of "child?"  I would have been more impressed!

Yep.  And the tone and inferrence I am getting is the Shaqview of how he himself (Shraq) dealt with their problems, "their" being Penny, Bryant, etc.  Not that you yourself Shraq could have been any part of the problem at all.

Bryant indeed was Kobme the way he refused to give the ball to Shrek in the Finals vs Detroit.  However, Bryant is very driven.  How much Shaq could have helped their working relationship by coming to preseason camp in shape and staying in shape thruout the seaon during his entire Lakerhood we all agree is huge.

Well i thought perhaps this might have been a tinsy tiny penetration.

[Guest_Randy]

Reality,

I think we must have watched a different NBA Finals because you obviously didn't see what happened HALF the time that they DID try to get the ball to Shaq!  Shaq waits for the throw-in, Ben Wallace runs around him to intercept the ball or pokes it away and gets to it before Shaq can even respond.  Shaq was WAY out of shape in the playoffs and Big Ben used his quickness to beat Shaq all over the floor.  Sure, Shaq got his points and rebounds but in return served up so many Detroit lay-ups I stopped counting!  Now IF Shaq were shape, last year, like he is this year, I believe that story would have a different conclusion!

[Reality]

Reality,

I think we must have watched a different NBA Finals because you obviously didn't see what happened HALF the time that they DID try to get the ball to Shaq!  Shaq waits for the throw-in, Ben Wallace runs around him to intercept the ball or pokes it away and gets to it before Shaq can even respond.  Shaq was WAY out of shape in the playoffs and Big Ben used his quickness to beat Shaq all over the floor.  Sure, Shaq got his points and rebounds but in return served up so many Detroit lay-ups I stopped counting!  Now IF Shaq were shape, last year, like he is this year, I believe that story would have a different conclusion!

It was also Tayshawn Prince D-ing up on Kobme.
Both are 6'7" or 6'8"
Princes wingspan is 7'2".  Wonder what Bryants is.

I still think the Bryant-Shraq rift was already in full force.  Kobme wanted to be the Finals MVP.  Granted BenWa and the smothering Detroit team D stopped the Duddy from getting the ball.  But you can't tell me Kobme was trying as hard as he could to get him the ball.

At any rate, back to Shraq.  Do you also wonder what will happen if/when some mildly serious or even fairly serious obstacles hit the Heat?  Or is this their season, nothings gonna go wrong.  I was lookin for Detroit to jell when they went on that 10 out of 11 run.  Caught portions of several of those games and they were looking tight.  But they came back down with a thud.

[rickortreat]

Randy, don't take the refs side in this.  It's not hard to call the game the right way.  An offensive player dislodges the man guarding him on a move to the basket- ITS A FOUL.

An offensive player makes a move and the defensive player touches him, ITS A FOUL.

That is the way the game is SUPPOSSED to be called.  The refs don't call it that way, which is why we see the game we do.  No finese, because that type of play isn't rewarded.  The NBA got some ugly games out of ugly teams with that type of referreing,  most notably Detroit's bad boys and those Riley coached Knick teams.  A very far cry from the entertaining games from the Showtime Lakers, Bird's Celtics or Ervings Sixers.

Those teams had one or two thugs at the most, and the primary play was quick athletic and talented.  The games were great to watch.  Today's games suck in comparison, and a big part of the problem is the way the game is reffed.  

[Guest_Randy]

Rick, Rick, Rick -- I keep telling you that the back-down move ISN'T just a Shaq thing -- of COURSE it's a foul -- but they haven't called it for YEARS so you can't complain just about Shaq!  

Let me give you an example, since you brought up the Lakers and the Showtime years -- Magic used to do the SAME thing to every PG in the league!  He'd isolate, post them up (by backing his way down into the lane) and then spin across the lane with the little hook shot of his.  It's NO different than what Shaq does -- he just does the same move with more power than anyone else has done it.  And it's wrong when Shaq does it, it was wrong when McHale used to do it, it's wrong when CWebb does it, etc.  Shaq's post-up move is illegal -- but so is every that uses a post move that "dislodges" another player.  The problem is that you want it called when Shaq does it but you think when Magic did it, it was great (entertaining) basketball.  The reason is that Shaq uses only the power move in moving to the basket and doesn't finish his shot up with a little hook shot.  The power move focuses on you being bigger and/or stronger in the blocks than your opponent and players at EVERY position do the EXACT same thing -- they just don't have the power that Shaq does.

I would LOVE to see them do away with this move -- it would make the entire NBA a LOT more exciting to watch -- what I have a problem with is when people want to get rid of Shaq's ability to do this move but allow everyone else to do it!  That's hypocrisy!!!   :bash:  

[rickortreat]

I agree.  It's not just Shaq, but he has been the biggest beneficary of the way the rules are enforced.  

I don't like contact in the post area at all.  Who ever initiates the contact is guilty of a foul.  A defender shouldn't touch the scorer, and the scorer cannot attempt to dislodge the defender to get a better shot.  The only dunks should be on plays where a defender was late getting over, not one where the offensive player bowles him over and goes up for a slam.  

Shaq actually has some moves, but if he can get away with knocking his opponent over, you won't even get to see them.  

Whn Magic or McHale did it, they did it against players of equal size, and the contact wasn't allways so physical.  I miss those post-up players who would dribble this way and that to get a shot.  And, many times when they were being guarded, they passed out of the post to an open player.  That was good basketball.