<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">MIAMI ? Something's not right. That's the only conclusion to draw, now, in this mysterious Shaquille O'Neal saga. Oh, sure, the Heat won its sixth consecutive playoff game without a setback and went up 2-0 on Washington in a best-of-seven Eastern Conference semifinal series with a casual 108-102 victory Tuesday night in AmericanAirlines Arena. But it did so around O'Neal... and not in the sense that he was anything resembling a centerpiece, but rather in the sense that he was just sort of out there. O'Neal, amazingly enough, mostly was uninvolved. He played an almost anonymous 37 minutes, which seems startling given what and who he is ? or, at least, what and who he is supposed to be ? in any basketball endeavor. And especially so when the NBA calendar turns to its post-season tournament. This is when O'Neal himself, during some lackluster moments throughout the regular season, insisted he would be at his best. Except maybe he can't be. Except maybe his sore thighs are more bothersome than Miami is choosing to admit. Or, and here's the scary part for the Heat, maybe the 33-year-old O'Neal really is showing his age in the speeded-up world of playoff activity. Goodness knows he has extra miles on him from those titles earned with the Los Angeles Lakers before coming to the Heat this season. The truth? O'Neal looked slow and cumbersome on lots of trips up and down the court in Game 2 against Washington. O'Neal again elected not to address the media after the game, which mattered not. His performance spoke volumes, anyway. The statistical line (16 points, seven rebounds) for O'Neal looked fine. Heat coach Stan Van Gundy, too, is absolutely correct when he suggests criticisms of O'Neal have to do with grandiose expectations. "Keep it in perspective," Van Gundy said. But that came after Van Gundy offered a comparison of O'Neal to Dallas center Erick Dampier, who earned a huge-money contract from the Mavericks as a result of producing the kind of numbers O'Neal is now producing. Whoa! Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa! Perspective? The Heat didn't acquire O'Neal to be an Erick Dampier. And the fact a diminished O'Neal is still a significantly better center than Washington counterpart Brendan Haywood ? "Who would you rather have?" Van Gundy asked alone in a hallway ? is also far removed from the crux of the argument.</div> Source It is amazing how Shaq's presence has allowed his teammates to drastically improve. Dwayne Wade has probably been the best player in the playoffs this year. Eddie Jones is no longer choking in the post season, and Haslem is making the most of all the opportunites he receives from Shaq being double teamed. Win or lose though, is Shaq worth the $40Million per year he plans on asking for?
To think that this is the best performance Shaq can give is hilarious Some people... anyways this touches on a more real topic: are the Heat not telling the whole story on Shaq's injury? Are the bruised thighs really bothering him more than he's letting on? Shaq looked good in the first half of game 2 against the Wizards but it appears like he got hit in the thighs again near the end. In the second half he didn't have a lot of lift and wasn't as mobile as he could be. It also looked like he was struggling a bit when running back. Maybe it's the lack of practice and playing time that have him rusty? Either way the stat production doesn't matter at the moment. All great player's stats drop when they play on a good team. Jordan's stats declined as his team got better. Same with Wilt. Their coaches wanted them to defer to their team because they had the talent around them to win as one.
I've noticed the Miami media has been bringing this up lately. Could it be a ploy to lower Shaq's salary demands when the season is over? Right now Shaq is doing and saying all the right things. He acted the same when he played with the Lakers and was winning. However, after Dr. Buss didn't cave into his demands Shaq did a 180 on the Lakers, the franchise, and most recently the city of LA. Is the Miami media hip to the game and trying to avoid a potential disaster in Miami. Let's look at the options the Heat and Pat Riley will have to face in the summer if they win or lose. If the Heat win the championship, Shaq is going to ask for an extension NOW. He will bring up the fact he recruited Zo for a ring discount, and that the team won the championship because of him. Despite Shaq not being Shaq during "Shaq Time" he will take the credit for the team when it comes to showing him more money. If the Heat lose to the Pistons or in the championship. Then what? Shaq is still going to ask for an extension. Does Riley give in and surrender the future of the Heat to the Diesel? Shaq wants $40Million a season, the salary cap is $45Million, so the Heat will be paying a hefty luxury tax. As the season winds down, Pat Riley is already feeling the pressure of having to deal with these questions. If you are Shaq, you cannot back down from your salary demands. Especially if Shaq brings the title to Miami, he will insist on a raise. In Shaq's mind he is the MDE, and he doesn't need an MVP trophy to justify him being the most dominant player in the league. Backing down from a bigger payday only justifies Dr. Buss not wanting to give you one in the first place.
<font color="Red">Shaq</font> is clearly injured and not playing anywhere near 100%. I cannot recall watching Shaq struggle up and down the court like he was in Game 2. But his mere presense out there is huge for the Heat. D-Wade is putting up some record-breaking numbers in the playoffs but Shaq is still key to winning the title. Shaq is busting his butt out there, so I guess this is what he can give for now. The good part is that this is all he has to give for now, evident by the Heat still winning. There is no need for Shaq to try and go 100 miles per hour if he is hurt. He has to try and save himself for the next rounds. I think that Shaq is avoiding the media because he does not want to say how bad he really is. I'm worried that someone might take a cheap shot at Shaq's thighs if they can take him out of for the season. As far the contract extension, I really don't know. <font color="Red">Shape</font>, where did you get that 45 million figure? I had never heard it. I seems a bit upsurd if he does in fact ask for that. The saving grace with the Heat is that <font color="Red">Dwyane Wade </font> is under rookie contract until 2007. After that, it is obvious the Heat will have to max him out. That is why the 2005 Miami Heat are as good a team as can be assembled in today's <font color="Red">salary cap era</font>. If you can pay Shaq his 30 Mil and surroung him with this kind of talent, its almost impossible to beat. Hats off to Pat Riley, Randy Phund and the Heat front office. As far as the future is concerned, hopefully the Heat win the title and some of these guys are willing to take less money to come back i.e. Shaq and <font color="Red">Udonis Haslem</font>. Udonis will surely get some great offers, which the Heat simply can't match. Considering the kind of money that gets thrown around these days (Boozer,Foyle, etc.) Udonis is good as gone from the Heat.
He asked the Lakers for $40Million, not $45Million, the $45 million is the salary cap for each team. Actually it's not $40Million either, this is what Shaq asked for ... <div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Announced after the display that there should be no concerns from the Lakers about extending his contract for another three years, at more than $100 million, because the 31-year-old now plans to play until he's 38 or 39.</div> Link So it will average at $33.33Million per season. I believe the players get a max 15% pay raise each season so the breakdown would be. 2005-06 $31.7Million 2006-07 $36.5Million 2007-08 $41.0Million So it would max out in the $40Million per year range. This is why the Lakers decided to trade him. This gets real interesting if Shaq asks the same from the Heat, because Dwayne Wade becomes a free agent in 2007/08, when Shaq will be eating $40Million worth of cap space.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting shapecity:</div><div class="quote_post">So it would max out in the $40Million per year range. This is why the Lakers decided to trade him. This gets real interesting if Shaq asks the same from the Heat, because Dwayne Wade becomes a free agent in 2007/08, when Shaq will be eating $40Million worth of cap space.</div> Yo Shapecity, isn't there an early bird exception of some sort which states that you can re-sign any player for any amount exceeding the cap given that he has been on your team for at least 4 years? So regardless of Shaq eating up all the cap they can still re-sign Wade?
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting SkiptoMyLue11:</div><div class="quote_post">Yo Shapecity, isn't there an early bird exception of some sort which states that you can re-sign any player for any amount exceeding the cap given that he has been on your team for at least 4 years?</div> The early bird won't be used on Dwayne Wade because it's only good for 2 years, and it would only allow Wade to increase his previous season salary by 175% or the average player salary. Wade will be receiving a max contract worth more. The Heat will probably use the Larry Bird exception on Wade, but his salary still counts against the cap either way. Both exceptions count against a team's cap, but these exceptions allow a team OVER their cap to re-sign there free agents. <div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post"> So regardless of Shaq eating up all the cap they can still re-sign Wade?</div> Yes they can still sign Dwayne Wade and have Shaq. The problem will be whether or not the Heat have enough to offer for the rest of the team.
I think you're jumping the guy a bit here Shape. <div class="quote_poster">Quoting shapecity:</div><div class="quote_post">I've noticed the Miami media has been bringing this up lately. Could it be a ploy to lower Shaq's salary demands when the season is over? </div> The media may be trying to make the assumption that Shaq is not worth what he's asking for, but it highly highly unlikeley that this is the game Riley, Micky Arison, Randy Pfund, or even Van Gundy are playing. Riley and SVG know exactly that in order to win it all, you have to be focused and ready for each game, and sitting Shaq out is a result of the dominance the Heat showed the Wizards with or without Shaq. They want him 100% or near it when they face the Pistons and in the Finals, if they make it. <div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Right now Shaq is doing and saying all the right things. He acted the same when he played with the Lakers and was winning. However, after Dr. Buss didn't cave into his demands Shaq did a 180 on the Lakers, the franchise, and most recently the city of LA. </div> I remember Shaq last year when asked about the extension during the LA series versus the Spurs and the Wolves, he was discussing in more details, saying they have not reached an agreement yet and all of that. And Buss was saying the same. T This year however, Shaq and Riley didn't comment on the extension at all during the playoffs, and their answers were no longer than "Everything is going well, this is not the time to discuss it", or such. I think Shaq is focused more than when he was a Laker, specially the last couple of years. <div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Is the Miami media hip to the game and trying to avoid a potential disaster in Miami. Let's look at the options the Heat and Pat Riley will have to face in the summer if they win or lose. If the Heat win the championship, Shaq is going to ask for an extension NOW. He will bring up the fact he recruited Zo for a ring discount, and that the team won the championship because of him. Despite Shaq not being Shaq during "Shaq Time" he will take the credit for the team when it comes to showing him more money. If the Heat lose to the Pistons or in the championship. Then what? Shaq is still going to ask for an extension. Does Riley give in and surrender the future of the Heat to the Diesel? Shaq wants $40Million a season, the salary cap is $45Million, so the Heat will be paying a hefty luxury tax.</div> First of all, from what I heared/read, the number Shaq is discussing with the Heat is 60 Million extension over two years, and he absolutly deserves it. Secondly, Shaq DID all those things for Miami. He did recruit Zo, he did make everyone better, he did make Miami an instant title contender, and if they win, nobody is going to argue it's because of him.
<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">First of all, from what I heared/read, the number Shaq is discussing with the Heat is 60 Million extension over two years, and he absolutly deserves it.</div> I believe this was the figure the Lakers offered him to extend him another two seasons. Shaq wants MORE than what the final amount on his current deal is maxed out at, $30.5Million. He wanted 3 more years for $100Million I provided the link above. Under National Basketball Association rules, O'Neal is eligible to receive a three-year extension worth upward of $108 million. O'Neal signed a maximum extension in 2000.
That link to the article you post Shape, is old. It's from the 2003-2004, from the Lakers Pre-season, back when Shaq was 31 (33 now). I haven't been following the Shaq contract stuff, but last year when he was a Laker (in 2004), he reportedly wanted a 3 year 108 Million contract extension, which is roughly 36 million a year. Don't know about now though.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Banks:</div><div class="quote_post">That link to the article you post Shape, is old. It's from the 2003-2004, from the Lakers Pre-season, back when Shaq was 31 (33 now). I haven't been following the Shaq contract stuff, but last year when he was a Laker (in 2004), he reportedly wanted a 3 year 108 Million contract extension, which is roughly 36 million a year. Don't know about now though.</div> Could he have done that? I don't think that the CBA in place at the time would allow for such an atrocious salary.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Banks:</div><div class="quote_post">That link to the article you post Shape, is old. It's from the 2003-2004, from the Lakers Pre-season, back when Shaq was 31 (33 now). I haven't been following the Shaq contract stuff, but last year when he was a Laker (in 2004), he reportedly wanted a 3 year 108 Million contract extension, which is roughly 36 million a year. Don't know about now though.</div> It was an old link, but Shaq remained set on the 3 year, $100Million extension from the Lakers. I doubt he has lowered the figure since he's been with the Heat. He's done everything they've asked of him, and I'm sure he expects them to show him the money when the season is over.
It could have been that the situation in L.A. was that he didn't enjoy playing there anymore and that the only thing that would keep him in L.A. would have been a maximum extension that probably only L.A. could offer him. Now that he is in Miami and seems to be happy with them and seems to have a very close relationship with Wade, his priorities might make his need for a monster contract diminish some. Anyway, in the future they will have Shaq and Wade. They were over the cap this year and managed to assemble a great team, assuming they have the same management, then they have the potential to be a title contender for the next 3-5 years. It seems everyone enjoys playing with Shaq and Wade, so there shouldn't be problems getting good players for the team even with cap difficulties.
