Miami's big deal is Lakers' big screwup
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Rudy Tomjanovich was not getting quite the attention that was expected.
Here he was, a 12-year coaching veteran with an inspiring life story (an unforgettable injury in an on-court fight as a player, followed by the ultimate triumph as a coach and a winning battle over cancer), taking over the most glamorous job in the NBA, and yet every member of the gathered media was somewhat distracted. One eye on Tomjanovich, for sure, but the other on the nearest cell phone or television screen or carrier pigeon, or whatever news-gathering device was nearest. No offense to Rudy T, of course. It's just that as he was speaking, arguably the biggest deal in NBA history was being cemented nearly 3,000 miles away, in Florida.


Shaquille O'Neal from the Lakers to Miami for Lamar Odom, Brian Grant, Caron Butler and a draft pick. That surely will be handy knowledge in a trivia contest some day.

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Did we say this is the biggest deal in league history? Heck, this could be the biggest swap since the Louisiana Purchase. This is a deal that still has shock value, though it seemed inevitable that O'Neal was headed somewhere. It was clear he was unhappy with the Lakers organization as far back as last October, when he repeatedly shouted, "Pay me!" in the direction of owner Jerry Buss during the Lakers' first preseason game in Honolulu. O'Neal wanted a contract extension. Buss did not want to commit big-time dollars and years to O'Neal and was put off by his on-court negotiating style. Buss also wanted to retain O'Neal nemesis and teammate Kobe Bryant, who opted out of his contract to become a free agent this summer. The stage, then, clearly was set for the Lakers and O'Neal to part ways.



Still, it feels odd. O'Neal is the best center in a league that only has a handful of legitimate ones. Though his age (32) and lack of conditioning have worn down his value, he might be the most physically dominant player in league history. As one general manager says, "You always learn to expect the unexpected in this business. But you never expect someone to do something so foolish as trade Shaq."



In just a few weeks, the foolishness of these Lakers has led to the death of the team. (Was it really less than a month ago that the Pistons knocked the Lakers into oblivion?) We have been bequeathed a new NBA, with an uncertain balance of power. The Lakers now appear to be on par with Phoenix and Memphis. Miami should, at least, rise to the elite of the East with Detroit and Indiana, and those three teams might be better than any in the West. At most, Miami will bring a championship to South Florida.



We've been given a league where a single player (Bryant) must be bribed to sign with a team not just by the ho-hum lure of a $130 million contract, which the Lakers have offered, but by being given utter control over the franchise — to the point where he can force out two guys who are, arguably, the greatest coach in league history and the best player of his era. And Bryant can accomplish this despite facing possible jail time. The Lakers have done something foolish here, and in the process, the Heat have skyrocketed and the whole league has changed.


The Lakers are going to miss Shaquille O'Neal when he's gone. (Paul Sancya / AP)


The trade's implications for the immediate parties are obvious. During his introduction, Tomjanovich said, "I'm hoping for the very best personnel and all those things. If it isn't, I'll coach who we have, and I'll coach them to the best of my ability." Clearly, these Lakers no longer have the league's very best personnel, an advantage they carried for most of the eight years O'Neal and Bryant were paired in gold and purple.



Now, the Lakers will have Gary Payton as the point guard, and Bryant — assuming he does not bolt as a free agent and is not found guilty in his rape trial, which begins in August — as the shooting guard. The Lakers then have two options for the frontcourt. They can go with Odom at small forward, Grant at power forward and sign a center (Vlade Divac has been mentioned). Or the team can go small, with Butler or Devean George at small forward, Odom at power forward and Grant at center. Should Karl Malone decide to return, he would be the power forward.



That lineup is not bad, but make no mistake, the Lakers were ripped off in this deal. They had to make it to appease Bryant and help guarantee that he would re-sign, just as they had to jettison Phil Jackson and made a $40 million offer to Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski. But in exchange for O'Neal, they failed to get an All-Star player. Grant has two bad knees and is more heart than talent, and Butler is vastly overrated. Odom has value, but he has been inconsistent in his five-year career and is a guy who is best when creating, when working with the ball in his hands. Of course, it will be tough for Odom to wrest the ball from Bryant's control. The Lakers might have a decent lineup next season, but no one is shaking in his high-tops over it, like when O'Neal manned the middle. In fact, it was Grant who, in the summer of 2000, helped force a sign-and-trade from Portland to Miami, in part because he did not want to knock around with O'Neal in the Western Conference anymore. No one is going to request a trade because they're tired of banging bodies with Lamar Odom.



The trade is of more significance to the Heat, a team coming off a breakthrough year in which it rebounded from the sudden coaching retirement of Pat Riley and an 0-7 start to reach the second round of the playoffs. Even after the Heat's season ended, Riley — still the team's president — noted, "We can't get too excited. We still need a big man."



So, um, will this do, Pat? The trade obviously hurts the Heat's depth, but it gives them a lineup of rising star Dwyane Wade at point guard, Eddie Jones at shooting guard, Udonis Haslem at power forward and either rookie Dorell Wright or Rasual Butler at small forward — and the team still has free-agent possibilities, made much more promising by the addition of O'Neal. And how much more does an Eastern Conference team need beyond O'Neal? The East has not seen a big man like O'Neal since ... well, since O'Neal. After he left Orlando in 1996 to join the Lakers, the East became dreadfully low on centers and has remained that way. One thing that attracted O'Neal to Miami, a league source says, is the dearth of big men in the Eastern Conference. "That is going to add years to his career," the source says. "He did not want to go East at first, but the more he thought about it, the more he realized that playing against guys like Jeff Foster and Mark Blount will make him look very good."



For eight years and three championships, O'Neal helped the Lakers look very good. Now he will do the same for the Heat. Bryant, out of O'Neal's shadow and in control of the team, could become even better and lead the Lakers to championship contention. There's a chance the trade will benefit all parties. But for now, the Heat are a powerhouse, the East looks dominant, the Lakers look like a team in trouble — and that shows how much the league has changed in just a few weeks.

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/sports/sfl-hyde13jul13,0,6053375.column?coll=sfla-sports-front

HYDE: Trade house for Shaq? Great idea!
Dave Hyde


July 13, 2004

Many of the world's best ideas -- trains, the organization of the solar system, cookies dipped in milk -- met initial resistance. Perhaps that's the only way to understand why every South Florida sports fan isn't throwing confetti over the Shaquille O'Neal trade. But the sometimes-tepid manner in which it's being discussed is almost as mystifying as the Lakers' decision to trade him in the first place.

O'Neal averaged 22 points, 13 rebounds and 59 percent shooting in the NBA playoffs last month. But now you keep hearing how, at 32, he's clearly "on the downside?"

O'Neal also fought double- and triple-teams from defenses to average among the league's best last season in shooting percentage (first), free throws taken (first), rebounds (ninth), blocks (seventh) and the cumulative efficiency ranking (fourth).

But now he's significantly "aging and overweight?"

He was the NBA Finals' Most Valuable Player three times in the past four years, remains a full-poster personality, never has been in a spot of public trouble, puts the fear of embarrassment into opponents, guarantees every Heat game will be a show and probably a sellout, offers the inside presence to free Dwyane Wade's star outside and has a been-there-won-that pedigree unlike any player in South Florida history.

But two days after the trade announcement, with the dust all settled and the names all taken, nearly half of people evidently are against this trade, according to the Sun-Sentinel's on-line poll.

People, what are you smoking?

This is a hands-down, clear-cut, no-doubt, close-your-mouth-and-open-your-mind, no-brainer of a trade. The Heat was uniquely blessed by everything from the Lakers' missteps to being in the Eastern Conference to getting loads of sunshine. So let's dismiss the concerns one by one.

"The Heat broke up something good."

It's true -- last year's team was good. It was fun good. It was fresh good. It was 42-40 good, seven-playoff-games-to-beat-New-Orleans good, still-no-center good and looking-up-at-better-and-nearly-as-young Indiana-and-Detroit good. That's the key word: Good. This trade is a shot to be great.

"The Heat gave up too much."

You know how many All-Star years Lamar Odom, Brian Grant and Caron Butler have, combined? Zero. Odom should become one. But getting out from the $43 million owed Grant is a godsend. So the only reason for questioning this deal is ... Butler? A guy who took a big step back last year? Who is between positions (small forward, shooting guard) and projects to be a role player on a contending team? You question the deal over that?

"The Heat can't put enough talent around Shaq."

This is the gamble. But role players can be found easier than once-an-era players. It will be interesting to see whom Riley signs with the $5 million exemption (Toni Kukoc? Bob Sura? Derek Fisher?) Also, watch to see if the Heat doesn't sign top draft pick Dorell Wright and explores trading the high-school hope for someone to contribute immediately.

"Yeah, but Shaq won all those titles with Kobe Bryant."

Reverse that thought. Kobe won those titles with Shaq. Without Shaq, the Kobe-led Lakers were 55-45 in recent years. Without Kobe, the Shaq-led Lakers were 36-9. You don't need to do the math to see who was the engine. Plus, the Heat still has Wade, who is the next great player in the league.

"This doesn't guarantee the Heat will win the big one."

Excuse me, but the Heat has won one playoff series in four years. It has never been past the conference finals -- and got dusted in five games by Chicago that time. What kind of silly arrogance allows Heat fans to put the bar at "the big one" on this trade? You can dream big, but don't label anything that falls short a failure.

"Shaq is getting older, more injured, less fit ..."

And he looms over the league like no other player. Plus, he now gets to steamroll an Eastern Conference with none of the inside presence of Tim Duncan, Yao Ming or Kevin Garnett. The list of East centers is a Who's Who of Who's That? Eddy Curry, Zydrunas Ilgauskas, Jeff Foster, Brian Skinner, Mark Blount, Jason Collins, Nazr Mohammed, Samuel Dalembert, Rafael Araujo, Joel Pryzbilla, Emeka Okafor, Kelvin Cato, Kwame Brown and Ben Wallace. Detroit's Wallace (technically a power forward) is the best of the lot. Shaq dominated him in the Finals.

"Pat Riley will have to coach for this to succeed."

Such talk compelled Riley to announce coach Stan Van Gundy's contract extension on Monday. Van Gundy showed his talent with a team of no expectations last season. He deserves every chance to win with a team of big expectations.

"Yeah, but the Heat still gave up too much."

Milwaukee's Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was traded in 1975 to the Lakers for Elmore Smith, Brian Winters, Dave Myers and Junior Bridgeman. San Francisco's Wilt Chamberlain was traded to Philadelphia in 1965 for Paul Neumann, Connie Dierking and Lee Shaffer. In 1968, Chamberlain was sent to the Lakers for Jerry Chambers, Archie Clark and Darrall Imhoff.

In each case, the team trading the superstar didn't get close to equal value. You never do for a mega-star in the NBA. It took a while for the world to accept Hemingway's writings and Picasso paintings. Maybe, soon, everyone will understand just what a steal this trade is.

Dave Hyde can be reached at dhyde@sun-sentinel.com.