GO FOR 2

The Phoenix Suns have agreed in principle today to a trade which sends Shaquille O’Neal to the Cleveland Cavaliers. The two teams have flirted with the move for months now, so today’s move really shouldn’t surprise anyone, although it will likely have some ramifications. The Suns are sending Shaq to the Cavs, who in turn are sending Sasha Pavlovic, Ben Wallace, a second round pick, and cash back to the desert. (As a side note for those who don’t know, Shaq has a reputation for becoming a reserve Sherrif’s deputy everywhere he lives, hence the killer title).

So does the move mean that the Cavaliers can contend? That depends, contend with whom? The Cavaliers posted an NBA best 66-16 record, and were bounced by the Orlando Magic in the Eastern Conference Finals. Now, having Shaq would have really helped nullify the inside presence of Dwight Howard, who really hurt the Cavs in that series. However, next year K.G. will be back and the Celtics are a more likely Eastern Conference foe. Shaq probably won’t help as much against the Celtics as he would against the Magic, because the Celtics tend to play more slashing and jumpshooting ball. But there’s an upside here too, Shaq may not help much in that matchup, but he shouldn’t hurt either. The Celtics are an old team (aside from Rajon Rondo), and don’t get up and down the floor nearly as quick as, say, the Lakers, so Shaq’s own age and mobility won’t be much of a hindrance there.

Now, a lot of people are going to knock this move, saying that Shaq didn’t help any in Phoenix, in fact they missed the playoffs this year. First off all, the Suns missed the playoffs because the West is stacked right now. Second, Phoenix has problems because Steve Kerr is an imbecile, not because of Shaq. Kerr messed up the Suns from top to bottom, being unable to figure out his coaching situation, dismantling the team, waffling on playing up-tempo, and bringing in a player who didn’t fit the system he was (kind of) using.

Despite all that, Shaq flourished last year. The big man played in 75 games and averaged 17.8 points and 8.4 boards a game. Consider the fact the Mo Williams played an all-star (literally and figuratively) season, and suddenly LeBron looks to have a pretty good cast around him for what could be his last title shot in Cleveland.

Ok, so if you watched even a second of the NBA playoffs you couldn’t get away from the commercials for Spike Lee’s ‘Kobe Doin’ Work’ documentary. IMDB says that the documentary follows Kobe through a day of the NBA playoffs when the Lakers were playing the Spurs (I dont hate myself enough to actually watch this – Just kidding, mostly).

So, immediately after that I hear about LeBron James’ documentary ‘More Than a Game’ (And yes, I know this was actually made before Spike Lee’s Kobe joint). Now, I haven’t watched James’ movie either, but according to IMDB it’s at least 2 whole stars out of 10 better than Kobe’s.

Well, now Dwight Howard has decided he’s feeling left out (Why, Dwight? At least you were in the finals). The Big Lead has turned me on to a Page 6 story which states Howard is gonna be the next one to hit the big screen. Apparently the movie is called “Switch”  and the basic synopsis is that “a white, unathletic, unpopular high-school freshman . . . swaps basketball skills with Howard.”

Dwight Howard. Photo Courtesy of Keith Allison. Flickr.com/keithallison (Creative Commons Licensed)

How do you burn an hour or two showing an unathletic, unpopular white kid turning it over in the paint and missing free throws? Thats the director’s problem.