Kori Ellis
01-06-2005, 06:00 AM
Jermaine O'Neal: Mr. Resilient
http://www.woai.com/spurs/story.aspx?content_id=D26DB007-1EAB-4CEC-8CE8-A9CC5B4B21E6
By Rasheeb Shrestha
FullSportPress.com
You’ll watch him take the SBC Center floor tonight with his trademark cornrows held back by his trademark headband. You’ll see him hit turnaround jumpers, throw down vicious dunks and fight for seemingly every rebound. You’ll see him block shots with either hand and play with the highest level of passion and energy imaginable. And when you realize he’s doing all of this against our beloved Tim Duncan, you’ll be thinking to yourself that if this guy ever got it all together, he could be a top five player in this league. Maybe even top 3. Heck, maybe even …
Jermaine O’Neal wasn’t supposed to play tonight, but the Federal Court ruling reducing his suspension for his role in the Disaster in Detroit changed that. Despite the overwhelming negative backlash resulting from the incident, O’Neal enters tonight’s game trying to salvage a season, not a career. That is not the case for teammate Ron Artest, who will be watched excruciatingly closely for the remainder of his playing days. Artest’s season long suspension has put O’Neal and the Indiana Pacers in an almost impossible quandary -- to try and compete for the NBA title without their second best player.
It’s a thought that has Pacer fans slamming their heads against a brick wall. One minute, they’re the team to beat in the East –- destroying the defending Champion Pistons on their home floor -– and the next, they’re a mere afterthought, hardly meriting discussion among the NBA’s best. But O’Neal will make sure the Pacers re-enter that discussion. Go ahead, try and bet against him, but know this: the only constant in this man’s NBA career has been adversity. He’s seemingly been through it all at the tender age of 26, yet the reason he’s still on his feet is because he knows how to make the best out of bad situations.
You can make the argument that O’Neal can blame only himself for his first NBA predicament; for if he had chosen college over the 1996 Draft, maybe he would have actually gotten some playing time. Instead, he was buried deep on the Portland bench his first few years in the league. While he was no doubt frustrated, he also knew he was darn lucky. He got to practice against and learn from three big men who were all skilled in their own unique way: Arvydas Sabonis, Rasheed Wallace and Brian Grant.
Loyal almost to a fault, O’Neal signed an extension with the Blazers after being promised more playing time for the 2000 season. The promise went unfulfilled, but O’Neal took the time to learn from two more experienced newcomers –- Scottie Pippen and Steve Smith. When he was finally traded to Indiana for Dale Davis that summer, he was more than ready. After a solid 2001 season, O’Neal blossomed into a star in 2002, winning the Most Improved Player Award and a place on the All-NBA Third Team.
But, once again, his fortunes took a turn for the worse. The 2003 season was a tumultuous one for the entire Pacer organization, and O’Neal was no exception. In mid-season, he was dealt a crushing blow when his stepfather attempted suicide. Yet somehow O’Neal managed to carry on, leading the Pacers to a tie for the third best record in the East.
After being upset by Boston in the first round of the playoffs, O’Neal headed into the offseason as a free-agent. He wanted to remain with his head coach, Isiah Thomas, with whom he had become extremely close. However with Larry Bird taking over, rumors of a coaching change ran rampant. Bird slyly did not fire Thomas right away, leading O’Neal to re-sign with the Pacers for seven years. Less than a month later, Bird replaced Thomas with Rick Carlisle and O’Neal had been duped again.
Although not initially happy with the situation (he claimed he would have signed with the San Antonio Spurs had he known Thomas would be fired), O’Neal took his frustrations out on the court. What resulted was his finest season to date, as he led the Pacers to the NBA’s best record and finished third in the MVP voting.
The Eastern Conference Finals loss to the Detroit Pistons seemed like a mere bump in the road as the Pacers entered this season. For once, they didn’t have to worry about anything but basketball. That is, of course, until Artest decided he wanted to be the next Puff Daddy of the music industry.
And then came Fight Night in Detroit. The incident could have put a serious kink in O’Neal’s career path. But instead his suspension was reduced, mostly because he did not enter the stands during the fight, but also because his actions were totally out of character for him.
Not surprisingly, O’Neal’s return has provided a serious boost to the depleted Pacers. They’ve won four out of five, culminating in O’Neal’s 55 point effort against the Milwaukee Bucks on Tuesday. It wasn’t only a career-high, it was the most points scored by anyone in the NBA this season.
But O’Neal will need a lot more of those performances just to keep the Pacers afloat the rest of the year. And come playoff time, the expectations of the team to advance without Artest will not be very high. First round? Maybe second round?
But what if O’Neal takes his game up another notch or two? What if he takes this team that was left for dead and somehow carries them past the Pistons and Shaquille O’Neal’s Miami Heat?
Well, then he would for sure have his place among the NBA’s top five players. Maybe even top three. Heck, maybe even …
Considering all the obstacles he’s been through, just the fact he would even be in such a discussion is amazing in itself. But that’s Jermaine O’Neal for you -- Mr. Resilient.
http://www.woai.com/spurs/story.aspx?content_id=D26DB007-1EAB-4CEC-8CE8-A9CC5B4B21E6
By Rasheeb Shrestha
FullSportPress.com
You’ll watch him take the SBC Center floor tonight with his trademark cornrows held back by his trademark headband. You’ll see him hit turnaround jumpers, throw down vicious dunks and fight for seemingly every rebound. You’ll see him block shots with either hand and play with the highest level of passion and energy imaginable. And when you realize he’s doing all of this against our beloved Tim Duncan, you’ll be thinking to yourself that if this guy ever got it all together, he could be a top five player in this league. Maybe even top 3. Heck, maybe even …
Jermaine O’Neal wasn’t supposed to play tonight, but the Federal Court ruling reducing his suspension for his role in the Disaster in Detroit changed that. Despite the overwhelming negative backlash resulting from the incident, O’Neal enters tonight’s game trying to salvage a season, not a career. That is not the case for teammate Ron Artest, who will be watched excruciatingly closely for the remainder of his playing days. Artest’s season long suspension has put O’Neal and the Indiana Pacers in an almost impossible quandary -- to try and compete for the NBA title without their second best player.
It’s a thought that has Pacer fans slamming their heads against a brick wall. One minute, they’re the team to beat in the East –- destroying the defending Champion Pistons on their home floor -– and the next, they’re a mere afterthought, hardly meriting discussion among the NBA’s best. But O’Neal will make sure the Pacers re-enter that discussion. Go ahead, try and bet against him, but know this: the only constant in this man’s NBA career has been adversity. He’s seemingly been through it all at the tender age of 26, yet the reason he’s still on his feet is because he knows how to make the best out of bad situations.
You can make the argument that O’Neal can blame only himself for his first NBA predicament; for if he had chosen college over the 1996 Draft, maybe he would have actually gotten some playing time. Instead, he was buried deep on the Portland bench his first few years in the league. While he was no doubt frustrated, he also knew he was darn lucky. He got to practice against and learn from three big men who were all skilled in their own unique way: Arvydas Sabonis, Rasheed Wallace and Brian Grant.
Loyal almost to a fault, O’Neal signed an extension with the Blazers after being promised more playing time for the 2000 season. The promise went unfulfilled, but O’Neal took the time to learn from two more experienced newcomers –- Scottie Pippen and Steve Smith. When he was finally traded to Indiana for Dale Davis that summer, he was more than ready. After a solid 2001 season, O’Neal blossomed into a star in 2002, winning the Most Improved Player Award and a place on the All-NBA Third Team.
But, once again, his fortunes took a turn for the worse. The 2003 season was a tumultuous one for the entire Pacer organization, and O’Neal was no exception. In mid-season, he was dealt a crushing blow when his stepfather attempted suicide. Yet somehow O’Neal managed to carry on, leading the Pacers to a tie for the third best record in the East.
After being upset by Boston in the first round of the playoffs, O’Neal headed into the offseason as a free-agent. He wanted to remain with his head coach, Isiah Thomas, with whom he had become extremely close. However with Larry Bird taking over, rumors of a coaching change ran rampant. Bird slyly did not fire Thomas right away, leading O’Neal to re-sign with the Pacers for seven years. Less than a month later, Bird replaced Thomas with Rick Carlisle and O’Neal had been duped again.
Although not initially happy with the situation (he claimed he would have signed with the San Antonio Spurs had he known Thomas would be fired), O’Neal took his frustrations out on the court. What resulted was his finest season to date, as he led the Pacers to the NBA’s best record and finished third in the MVP voting.
The Eastern Conference Finals loss to the Detroit Pistons seemed like a mere bump in the road as the Pacers entered this season. For once, they didn’t have to worry about anything but basketball. That is, of course, until Artest decided he wanted to be the next Puff Daddy of the music industry.
And then came Fight Night in Detroit. The incident could have put a serious kink in O’Neal’s career path. But instead his suspension was reduced, mostly because he did not enter the stands during the fight, but also because his actions were totally out of character for him.
Not surprisingly, O’Neal’s return has provided a serious boost to the depleted Pacers. They’ve won four out of five, culminating in O’Neal’s 55 point effort against the Milwaukee Bucks on Tuesday. It wasn’t only a career-high, it was the most points scored by anyone in the NBA this season.
But O’Neal will need a lot more of those performances just to keep the Pacers afloat the rest of the year. And come playoff time, the expectations of the team to advance without Artest will not be very high. First round? Maybe second round?
But what if O’Neal takes his game up another notch or two? What if he takes this team that was left for dead and somehow carries them past the Pistons and Shaquille O’Neal’s Miami Heat?
Well, then he would for sure have his place among the NBA’s top five players. Maybe even top three. Heck, maybe even …
Considering all the obstacles he’s been through, just the fact he would even be in such a discussion is amazing in itself. But that’s Jermaine O’Neal for you -- Mr. Resilient.