<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">MIAMI ? It seemed so easy for Shaquille O'Neal all those months ago. There was the police escort through Miami, the thousands of fans awaiting his arrival on the steps of AmericanAirlines Arena, the snappy one-liners, that infectious smile and the promise. Yes, the promise. "I'm going to bring a championship to Miami," O'Neal said all those months ago. "I promise." Promise broken. Best opportunity lost. The last sighting of O'Neal on Monday evening was of a tired, worn-out man leaving the court and realizing that his season was over, and quite possibly the best shot he had of winning another championship. O'Neal did all he could to lift the Heat into the NBA Finals, but it wasn't enough. Not by a long shot. Not by a final score of 88-82. With Dwyane Wade hurting and everything riding on this game, O'Neal needed to be the star, prove he is still the most dominant player in the NBA and, as the seconds ticked down, be the brightest light on this court and across all of South Beach. He needed more than the 24 points he scored in Game 6 and he needed them without the six turnovers. He needed to prove he was still the man driving the bus. This, after all, was the reason he had come here all those months ago. This is why there was a parade. A chance to play for a championship. A Game 7 against the defending champs. All or nothing. In the end, O'Neal simply couldn't pull it off. Chauncey Billups could. Rasheed Wallace could. But despite all his effort, Superman could not. O'Neal scored a series-high 27 points Monday. He scored nine points in the fourth and hit 3 of 4 free throws. O'Neal did what he could, and there must be an asterisk on his broken promise when you consider his thigh injury and Wade not being 100 percent because of an injured rib. But it was no secret that O'Neal's numbers were down in this playoff series. Blame the injury. Blame the Pistons' defense. Blame age. "I'll take the blame," O'Neal said of this lost opportunity. "I always do. I'll have to live with that."</div> Source
Promise Broken?? How??He said, he'd bring a championship... not necessarily the exact same year! and we ALL know if Wade was healthy.... Pistons would NOT be in the Finals. Best Opportunity Lost? I BEG TO DIFFER. This team will be back again and again. This unlucky situation is only gonna piss off Shaq and he will be back with a vengeance next year. Not to mention... D-Wade is getting better every year. And let's not forget... With Larry Brown leaving, is this Pistons team gonna remain the same? Indiana is gonna be the only roadblock next year for Miami since they will have a healthy O'neal and that crazy fool Artest back in the Lineup.
Exactly...He said he would bring a championship. He did not promise that he'll bring one in the 2004-2005 season. This guy should really looking into the quote more before he decides to write a story about it.
Whoever wrote that article should go die :/ absoloutely everything he said was wrong, and should get fired immediately.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting PUREPOINT:</div><div class="quote_post">Promise Broken?? How??He said, he'd bring a championship... not necessarily the exact same year! and we ALL know if Wade was healthy.... Pistons would NOT be in the Finals. Best Opportunity Lost? I BEG TO DIFFER. This team will be back again and again. This unlucky situation is only gonna piss off Shaq and he will be back with a vengeance next year. Not to mention... D-Wade is getting better every year. And let's not forget... With Larry Brown leaving, is this Pistons team gonna remain the same? Indiana is gonna be the only roadblock next year for Miami since they will have a healthy O'neal and that crazy fool Artest back in the Lineup.</div> Yes we really know If Wade was 100% the Heat would of won the series please......injures are part of the game and the teams that stay healthy are the ones that go for the title. Facts are facts. Neither team were 100%, you can't blame injures just because guys aren't 100%. It's a weak excuse. Shaq is getting older and is getting more injured as each year goes on. I don't see him ever winning a title again. His team just doesn't have the cap to get in better players to give him a better chance. He can't carry an offense anymore. Pistons will still be as strong next year even If Larry goes, Flip Saunders will still be a damn good replacement. Indiana will be back and even more hungry to go to the finals. So It will be tough just for Miami to get to the conference finals next season.
No one should count out Miami. Wade is amazing and they will be back next year. Also just because Larry Brown is leaving doesn't mean the Pistons will suck. It's the players that play the game not the coach and all Pistons players are smart and experienced.
All Net goes on to say that neither team was 100%!!! well, how would he feel if the pistons lost Chauncey Billups for the key remaining 3 games. He goes on to say that he can't carry an offense anymore!! What was Shaq's stat line for Game 7? When he has to... he CAN ... but all by himself?? against Pistons Defense?? I dont think anyone could!
<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Yes we really know If Wade was 100% the Heat would of won the series please......injures are part of the game and the teams that stay healthy are the ones that go for the title. Facts are facts. Neither team were 100%, you can't blame injures just because guys aren't 100%. It's a weak excuse.</div> Exactly, Richard Hamilton was still injured for the first three or four games. Most basketball players who carry injuries decide not to mention it and play on. You could argue the point that Wade and Shaq got injured because they didn't have enough conditioning. The fact is, they didn't perform at the end and they lost. You can't blame Detroit for the injuries and you can't put losing down to Wade being injured. If Miami was a good enough team, they would be able to win without Wade.
It's a shame the Heat had all those injuries. Having injuries to 6 different players and still coming down to Game 7 against the world champs isn't a dissapointing season IMO. They will be back next year if they re-sign their key FA's. (Haslem, etc.)
Pistons had injuries yes, but Miami was no question far more banged up. conditioning? no i dont think that has a much merit, maybe maybe maybe for shaq, and i dont personally believe it since he played in 77 games this year. Wade's injury was certainly not conditioning. And sure, injuries happen and thats part of the game. AllNet is absolutely right that no one is 100%, thats true. But when your best player is 25%?!?!? I mean i think its valid to mention the situation when talking about the series, though i agree it shouldnt be assumed that the Heat would of won even with a healthy roster. I'd look for the Heat next year, with Indiana bringing up the 2 seed.
