Cleveland, Beware Of Shaq The Hack

[duncan228]

Bickley: Cleveland, beware of Shaq the Hack
Dan Bickley
The Arizona Republic

Heads up, LeBron James. Your new teammate doesn't really care about you. He doesn't really care about the good folk of Cleveland, most of whom are starving for a championship and too blinded by s ust to see what's coming.

Beware.

Shaquille O'Neal is no longer Superman. He's a guy riding on someone else's cape, stealing someone else's idea, taking someone else's credit. Along the way, he's playing the country for a bunch of fools.

Of course. Why not? Shaq's a funny guy, mirthful, full of charisma. He knows when to turn it on, and when to shut it down. Whenever he gets into trouble, he acts like an overinflated cartoon character, and everyone forgets why they're mad. He rarely gets called out the way he should.

Seriously. The guy verbally assaulted Kobe Bryant in a disgusting, petty rap song. He took needless shots at Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, who merely dominated his position for an entire era.

He was accused of stalking a female rapper in Atlanta. He made fun of Stan Van Gundy and Chris Bosh, both upstanding members of the NBA. He's a bully with a dark side and zero rebounding les, and at some point during last season, he got around to telling Suns teammates about his new television show.

For the most part, O'Neal has skirted public condemnation for allegedly stealing Steve Nash's idea and parlaying it into his own prime-time platform, "Shaq Vs." Some critics think Nash should've kept his mouth shut, or just sold the idea himself. Some think Nash couldn't have pulled off that kind of starring role, while many in the national media are hesitant to criticize O'Neal on the eve of a new season, a season in which the Cavaliers will be a dominant story and full access will be a must.

Those people are missing the point entirely.

When Shaq came to the Suns in February 2008, he promised to fit in. He said he knew his role, and understood the team's run of heartbreak. He said he was sent here to shape Amaré Stoudemire into a Hall of Fame player. Like a kind giant, he vowed to push Phoenix over the top. It was all about us, not him, and everyone cheered. Everyone loves a bully when he's on your side, protecting you.

Yet in his first full season with the team, he cared so little about team chemistry, team harmony and the team leader that he blatantly swiped Nash's idea. That's almost as bad as stealing money out of another guy's locker.

Remember when Bryant was at the center of rape allegations in Colorado, and during interrogation, told police how O'Neal often paid his women hush money to keep them quiet? O'Neal didn't like that bit of teammate betrayal one bit. So what's the difference? And spare me O'Neal's slippery non-denials. The smoking gun is Nash's name on the show's closing credits.

Bottom line: O'Neal came to Phoenix understanding that the situation was delicate, that the window of opportunity was closing fast, and he told us all a bunch of lies. It was always about him, not us.

He started complaining about his touches. He danced with the JabbaWockeeZ at the start of the 2009 All-Star Game, and in a staged production, won the game's co-MVP award. He became the face of Twitter, drawing more than 2 million followers. And then he broke a bond with the most important player on the Suns. The sudden renovation of his image trumped the team he played for.

Worse yet, I bet O'Neal thinks it's all square. After all, O'Neal finished second to Nash in the 2004-05 MVP voting. O'Neal believed that award was stolen from him, and would later call Nash's awards "tainted," refusing to provide any form of explanation. Was he playing the race card? Was he kidding? Was he bitter?

When he got to Phoenix, O'Neal brushed the whole thing off, like it was all a big joke. That's how it works with Shaq.

So, heads up, Cleveland fans. You've been burned by Michael Jordan, concussed by the Steelers and disappointed by those great Indians teams of the mid-'90s. Now, you think you have the missing ingredient, the one that'll help bring a le to the shores of Lake Erie and make James stick around forever. Be warned:

The big guy will make you laugh. But Shaq is no sidekick. He's not the kind of guy to be content in the background. And if you've got a really good idea for a television show, I'd nail it down now, lest it be gone in the morning.

[Sdayi135]

Shaq could end up on trading block

The Cleveland Cavaliers could consider putting future hall-of-fame center Shaquille O’Neal on the trading block.

That is, if the most recent edition of the Shaq experiment does not work out in LeBron James' kingdom.

O'Neal is entering the final year of his US$20 million-a-year contract, which could make a deal tempting around the February trade deadline.

A trade could facilitate the Cavaliers in acquiring another superstar level player next summer when James is set to test the free agent bonanza of 2010.

[Culburn369]

Gee, a preemptive negative Shaq story. That's like the first one since just before he scratched Vs Indy way, way back there.

[iggypop123]

dilema what to do. hack a shaq or hack a lebron. both suck from the FT

[birdy219]

Do Suns fans ever stop whining?


Now, it's Shaq's fault why they suck. He stole my Stevie's tv idea. Wah Wah!

Shaq says thanks for the check.

[Def Rowe]

Shaq could end up on trading block

The Cleveland Cavaliers could consider putting future hall-of-fame center Shaquille O’Neal on the trading block.

That is, if the most recent edition of the Shaq experiment does not work out in LeBron James' kingdom.

O'Neal is entering the final year of his US$20 million-a-year contract, which could make a deal tempting around the February trade deadline.

A trade could facilitate the Cavaliers in acquiring another superstar level player next summer when James is set to test the free agent bonanza of 2010.

I thought Shaq's contract comes off the books in the summer of 2010 anyway. I don't understand the need for the Cavs to trade Shaq in February in order to have enough cap space the following summer to sign a big name player. I'm sure it has to do with my limited knowledge of how contracts work in the NBA.

[duncan228]

Shaq vs his conscience
By Buck Harvey

I'm not sure whether Shaquille O'Neal's telephone call to the San Antonio Little League team was a nice gesture, or another smart marketing moment. The man knows how to get attention.

His moves from Penny Hardaway to Kobe Bryant to Dwyane Wade to LeBron James are mostly about luck. The only one he had control over was his free-agent signing with the Lakers, and he couldn't have known what Bryant would become.

Still, that decision to play near Hollywood set up a few movie parts, and those connections probably led to his reality television show, "Shaq vs."

As did another connection.

According to a story in the Arizona Republic, Steve Nash originally had the idea for this show. From the article:

"Shortly after O'Neal was traded to the Suns in February 2008, Nash mentioned to his new teammate a reality show he was pursuing. It would feature the Suns point guard taking on professional athletes in their own sport.

"The topic didn't come up again until early in the 2008-09 season, when O'Neal boarded the Suns bus and told the team he would be starring in a new reality show in which he would be taking on, you got it, professional athletes in their own sport.

"You mean the idea you stole from me?" one Suns representative said he heard Nash say."

The article said Nash eventually sought out an entertainment lawyer. But when reached by the reporter, Nash "would not confirm the story."

This, however, likely does confirm the story. The credits that ran Tuesday night included "Executive Producer: Steve Nash."

"Heads up, LeBron James," wrote another Arizona columnist. "Your new teammate doesn't really care about you. He doesn't really care about the good folks of Cleveland, most of whom are starving for a le and too blinded by s ust to see what's coming. Beware.
Shaquille O'Neal no longer is Superman. He's a guy riding on someone else's cape, stealing someone else's idea, taking someone else's credit. Along the way, he's playing the country for a bunch of fools."

That said, the only reason "Shaq vs" is remotely entertaining is Shaq.

[Bandwagon Spurs Fan]

shaq doesn't have a conscience

[Udokafan05]

Finally someone in the media is calling Shaq out, since everyone else has always been afraid to. I never saw a headline about his stalking case on the tv, only saw it on internet. He gets away with all his stupid acts by trying to be funny, while he really looks like a dumbass.

[xellos88330]

Shaq, the Big Opportunist???

[redzero]

[howbouthemspurs]

WOw! That was harsh!

[duncan228]

Shaq gets ticket for stopping on Hollywood street

Basketball player Shaquille O’Neal has gotten a ticket in Hollywood for stopping his car in the street.

Los Angeles police Officer April Harding says officers spotted O’Neal’s dark blue Ford F-350 pickup truck on a street shortly before 2 a.m. Thursday.

Harding says O’Neal was talking to some people. There are several nightclubs in the area.

O’Neal was cited for impeding the reasonable movement of traffic and allowed to drive off.

The Cleveland Cavaliers acquired O’Neal from the Phoenix Suns in June, but the former Los Angeles Lakers star maintains contacts in California.