NBA: Will Shaquille O’Neal take Boston Celtics to another championship title?
The Los Angeles Lakers is a team that is cherished by the basketball nation and is given the highest regard for procuring the top most elite players and nurturing them into world class championship winners for more than 50 years. Till date Los Angeles Lakers have remained a consistent franchise, reeling in more fans by the end of each year. It is a franchise with such a strong aura that whoever enters it does not want to leave.
However there were those who took the daring step and opted out; Shaquille O’Neal is one of those audacious players. According to media speculation he wanted to leave the team because he did not like sharing his stardom with fellow team mate Kobe Bryant which led to a heated brawl between the two.
He departed from the Los Angeles Lakers to join the Miami Heat along with superstar Dwyane Wade, although he was able to lead the team to win a championship title adding to his 4th title. He soon left the team after an alleged feud with the head coach Pat Riley in 2008. Basketball purists believe any chance Shaquille had of building a dynasty was finished after he left the Lakers.
Shaquille O’Neal has suffered since he left the Lakers, joining Miami Heat followed by two other teams, Phoenix Suns and the Cleveland Cavaliers. The All-Star could have teamed up with LeBron James and win another championship ring, unfortunately the opposite happened. Shaquille scored only 11.5 points per game in this year’s playoffs making his lowest score average ever.
O’Neal hit the free-agency market this year after the playoffs; the once remarkable player was now a desperate player who nobody wanted to sign. The ‘Big Diesel’ is now 38 years old and is hungry for another title, rumours had it he wanted to go back to the Miami Heat and join the freshly formed All-Star trio including Dwyane Wade, LeBron James and Chris Bosh.
The 7’1” big man was struggling to a find a team this season that will welcome him aboard and give him the same respect he once got in the Los Angeles Lakers, but nobody seemed interested in the aging star. However two days ago something happened that no sports analyst or basketball pundit had predicted, Shaquille O’Neal was signed on by the legendary team Boston Celtics. He was given a two year contract worth $3 million, proving the fact that Shaquille is extremely concerned about his legacy and the fact that his former teammate, now rival Kobe has one more Championship title than him.
Accepting a minimum wage contract, putting his ego aside is as likely as the world is going to end in 2012. An ego so big that he left two teams because he could not cope with his former teammates, an ego so big that has left him delusional thinking he has another shot to the title.
Shaquille has once again created hype in the NBA; his presence in the Celtics has led many to believe he could now actually embed his name deeper into the league. With Kevin Garnett returning to the team after a successful knee surgery followed by star veteran players like Paul Peirce, Ray Allen, experts say the Diesel actually has a shot at winning another title.
It is no secret that O’Neal is the oldest player in the league and deteriorating as days go by. Nevertheless, it is a fact that he once was one of the top most scorers in the NBA, and was also one of the most dominating centers in the NBA history. Basketball pundits say you never know the old fiery Shaquille might get back into action and grab the Boston Celtics reigns taking them to the upcoming championship. The MVP recently told press he still has a year or two left in him, that statement will be proven true or false in the upcoming match against Miami heat which takes place on 26th October 2010. So fasten your seatbelts NBA fanatics because it is going to be one h**l of a battle.
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