Why the Suns went for Shaq

Surveys say basketball fans in the US overwhelmingly believe that the trade of Shaquille O’Neal to the Phoenix Suns in exchange for Shawn Marion and Marcus Banks was a bad deal for Phoenix. The Suns have been a dominant team in the West, have the most exciting offense, and have consistently overperformed.

So why did Suns general manager Steve Kerr pull the trigger?

Close doesn’t count. The only thing that would satisfy the Phoenix Suns management is their first NBA title in four decades of existence. Close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades, the saying goes. And many experts have argued that Phoenix does not know how to play playoff (i.e. San Antonio Spurs) style basketball. They couldn’t walk it up, because they didn’t have a big man to toss it into. Running only gets you so far.

Half a Shaq is still better. True, O’Neal is averaging career lows, around 15 points and 8 rebounds a game. And he is injured. And he is overweight. But, he can still post up, and is hard to push out of the paint. This is a dimension the Suns have never had. And half a Shaq is still half of a real center who has dominated the league in years past. In his book, “Who’s Better, Who’s Best in Basketball?” NBA statistician Elliott Kalb says, “Shaquille O’Neal is the best of the almost four thousand NBA players who have ever suited up in a uniform.” Half of that is still better than half the centers in the NBA.

Time is running out. No matter how many times Steve Nash pooh-poohs the age card, he’s still 34. Phoenix has much more mileage than most of the teams, and this is because they’ve been so good so consistently. Someone is going to break down, eventually. In two or three years’ time, the team will have to rebuild. They had to gamble in the hope of winning now.

Half the job is done. Whatever happens, the Suns are going to be in the playoffs. If not for a freak jumper by Peja Stojakovic to beat the buzzer, Phoenix would have beaten New Orleans, their hottest team in the West, without Shawn Marion. The rest of the players like Boris Diaw, have stepped into the void. All Shaq needs to do, realistically, is help them win a handful of crucial games in the playoffs, especially against teams that have talented big men, like Los Angeles and San Antonio.

Shaq needs a change. He’s gotten fat and lazy. He got a quick fix with a championship in Miami. Although he’s part of the reason they’ve been lousy this year, Shaq always needs new motivation. But unlike Michael Jordan, who needed bigger goals to get himself going, Shaq’s energy comes from changes of scenery. He needs a new toy so he can play well with others. And a fighting chance to take down LA?

Marion wanted out. Two days before training camp, Matrix expressed his desire to be traded. Seems he and Amare Stoudemire can’t really get along, despite results. Management was concerned that, when crunch time came in a big game, their differences might surface, costing the team when it is most crucial. With Shaq, they may not have that problem. Maybe.

More West games. The Suns have the best record in the West, but that’s because they’ve won more against East teams. They still have a lot of battles against fellow West powerhouses, and remember, they need to get out of the West first before even thinking about the Finals. A healthy Shaq would be a big help in getting them over the hump.

Playing possum. Remember the last year or so? Riley has surgery, Shaq and Wade go on vacation, and when the Heat get interesting, they come back. Shaq may not actually be as hurt as Miami claims he is. For all we know, he may have some minor injury, but is exaggerating it so he can get out of there. Why risk getting injured when you’re buying a ticket out?

Of course, the biggest question mark is whether or not Shaq is really motivated to even get back in shape. The warm weather might just relax him too much, and the Suns do have a surplus of wins at this point. If he doesn’t coast, if he gets excited playing alongside Nash, this may turn out to be a good trade for Phoenix. But if ever, it’s only for the short term.