July 12, 200422 yr Heat players have mixed emotions about Shaq's arrival By ISRAEL GUTIERREZ Miami Herald MIAMI - Surprisingly, the Heat's acquisition of Shaquille O'Neal, which remained as certain Sunday as it did late Saturday, has been met with mixed feelings. So one day after it was agreed upon, Heat players and one soon-to-be-former Heat player provided some perspective on the deal that will send Brian Grant, Lamar Odom and Caron Butler to Los Angeles for O'Neal. Eddie Jones has done it before. He played with O'Neal for two-plus seasons with the Lakers from 1996-99. And while he was a part of the family atmosphere that developed in the Heat locker room last season and hates to see it broken apart, Jones recognizes that what O'Neal will bring to the team is truly irreplaceable. ``You don't realize how easy the game is when you have a dominant big man,'' said Jones, who spoke to O'Neal over the weekend. ``I had it, and when you lose it, it's the toughest thing ever. You have to become overly aggressive sometimes. When you have that big guy there, he's going to create layups, open jump shots, and the game is going to be so much easier.'' Rasual Butler had an emotional connection with Caron Butler, as both were drafted in 2002 and grew close that summer, has heard the grumbling that Miami gave up too much of its future. But even he can't argue with the logic of it. ``I think that people have a legitimate argument,'' Rasual Butler said. ``But we're still talking about the most dominating player in all of sports, ever. Michael Jordan, nobody was more dominating than O'Neal. ... You'll never know if it was a good trade until a few years down the line.'' Grant called last season's Heat team one of the best he has ever been on. And he has no qualms with the Heat's decision. ``And when I say best teams, I mean the group of guys, the talent, the attitudes on the team,'' Grant said. ``This year was one of the best years for me. ``I understand the decision that they made. They're bringing in a player like Shaquille, and I've always thought that I would probably be here unless one of those four players wanted to come to Miami, and that was Shaquille, Kobe Bryant, Kevin Garnett or Tim Duncan.'' Despite Grant's feeling about the sensibility of the trade, it was rumored briefly that his knees would keep the entire process from going through. It was said Grant might fail a physical for the Lakers, therefore canceling the trade. But a source said Grant's tendinitis won't stall the trade. Further serving notice that the trade will continue as planned is word that Dallas owner Mark Cuban considers his team officially out of the running for O'Neal. The Mavericks were on O'Neal wish list and were momentarily considered the team most likely to acquire O'Neal, who was reportedly on South Beach on Sunday. That means the Heat's next step in building a championship contender will likely begin Monday as the team searches for free agents that will fill the team's needs at both forward positions and a reserve point guard. One source said Sunday that the team is seriously considering Toni Kukoc because of his ball-handling ability, his ability to play both forward positions and his outside shooting. Kukoc, 35, is coming off a contract that paid him $9.5 million last season, meaning he will likely command a good portion of, if not all, the $5.1 midlevel exception. And reports out of Los Angeles said Karl Malone might be considering following O'Neal to Miami. Last season, Malone signed with the Lakers for the team's $1.5 million exception, and he might be willing to take a similar contract this season for another shot at a championship. The appeal is not only playing with O'Neal, but also with Dwyane Wade. The Heat guard is one of the reasons O'Neal agreed to be traded to Miami, and he may attract more players to the Heat. ``He's a young kid that shows flashes of the greatest player to play, which is Michael Jordan,'' Butler said. ``Who knows what his potential is going to be? He's a good kid, he works hard, he's humble. ``Dwyane is a very unselfish player. What's crazy about Dwyane and the reason I think people like him is you see him attack all the time. He's always attacking people, but he's also very unselfish. That's the best player to play with. His passing ability is unbelievable. That's something he doesn't get enough credit for.'' Jones said Wade will only improve playing alongside a presence like O'Neal. ``Dwyane is growing into a great, great player and it's going to help him dramatically,'' Jones said. ``He's going to see how the game opens up for him a lot more.'' While Wade might flourish, one thing the Heat might never find again is the camaraderie of last year's team. That, Grant said, can't be overlooked not matter how sensible this trade looks. ``We look at it so much as a business and how it really doesn't matter if everybody likes each other, and it's always pushed into that context,'' Grant said. ``But once you've been in the league, you realize that when you have the opportunity to play on a team where everybody respects each other and everybody genuinely likes and cares for one another, that's something that you can't buy. You usually can't put that together. We just sort of struck gold with that.'' http://www.dfw.com/mld/dfw/sports/9133032.htm?1c
July 12, 200422 yr Author I don't know how likely it is and its probably not, but what if the Heat signed Kukoc to the 5.1 million exception and Malone to the lower exception? Wade Jones Kukoc Malone Shaq I know I should probably stop dreaming now, plus this would leave us without a true point guard and force the Heat to find one that would sign for the league minimum. But, that would certainly restore a lot of our depth with Butler, Allen, Haslem, Wright, and a backup point guard all off the bench.
July 12, 200422 yr I really wanna hear Odom's reaction. I'm sure he's not exacty thrilled. Wade has a lot of pressure on him for next season but I'm certain that he'll take it and do unbelievable things with it. I'm glad the players are optimistic about it but I can understand their mixed emotions since they really did have an incredicle chemistry last year. Kukoc sounds good, I don't know about Malone..does he really have another season in him?
July 12, 200422 yr Odom goes back to the city where he started. Same arena and probably same results.
July 12, 200422 yr damn we have serious holes right now at the forward positions as long as we take care of 1 we will be fine i'd like to see haslem start....could he start at SF if we signed Kukoc or Malone?
July 12, 200422 yr I don't know how likely it is and its probably not, but what if the Heat signed Kukoc to the 5.1 million exception and Malone to the lower exception? Wade Jones Kukoc Malone Shaq I know I should probably stop dreaming now, plus this would leave us without a true point guard and force the Heat to find one that would sign for the league minimum. But, that would certainly restore a lot of our depth with Butler, Allen, Haslem, Wright, and a backup point guard all off the bench. 454055[/snapback] not only is it a dream my freind,but it is a possibility. if the heat throw the 5.1 exception at kukoc with the lure of playing with shaq,and the 1.5 to bring malone like he did for LA its a good possibility you might see both those guys here next year. u really dont need a TRUE PG. the lakers did without one at times b4 payton got there. fisher often didnt play and they didnt use a PG.the same could happen here with just alot of good ball handlers.wade is the only ball handler u need and some decent passers to get the ball to shaq.thats it. Kukoc isnt a bad passer either.
July 12, 200422 yr kukoc isnt worth a full exemption at this point in his career. 454101[/snapback] but hes worth more than half of it. about 3.5 would just about do it
July 12, 200422 yr kukoc isnt worth a full exemption at this point in his career. 454101[/snapback] but hes worth more than half of it. about 3.5 would just about do it 454105[/snapback] sure go for it. :plain
July 12, 200422 yr kukoc isnt worth a full exemption at this point in his career. 454101[/snapback] but hes worth more than half of it. about 3.5 would just about do it 454105[/snapback] sure go for it. :plain 454107[/snapback] y not? who else do the heat go after? 1 year isnt much of a gamble at that price
July 12, 200422 yr Kukoc still has a few good years off the bench left. I don't know about starting though. He hasn't started in a while. Sign Kukoc and Malone, start Rasual and Malone, have Kukoc and Haslem come off your bench as the energy men. Have Kukoc and Haslem in the game when it's late. I can't wait.
July 12, 200422 yr I don't want Rasual starting. He's too inconsistent for my likings, I don't really see much in him but hey prove me wrong.
July 12, 200422 yr I don't want Rasual starting. He's too inconsistent for my likings, I don't really see much in him but hey prove me wrong. 454155[/snapback] He hasn't had a chance to prove himself. He's shown signs that he could be a good player when given the chance. Remember when he PWNED Washington 2 times last year in his first few games back? He's also a great shooter, something Caron wasn't. Caron's threes were always so flat. With Shaq in there, he's gonna kick it out sometimes and Rasual is a guy who can knock down shots in bunches when given the chance. It's not like he's gonna be a star or anything. He's gonna be a good role player. If it doesn't work, start Kukoc. (Assuming we sign him.)
July 12, 200422 yr The Heat are turning into the team I hate most. Without Shaq, Malone, Phil Jackson, and possibly w/out Kobe...there's no reason to hate them anymore. The hate turns towards the Heat. They were fun and exciting last season, and even though I'm a Magic fan, it was nice to see them use young talent that was predominantly their's from the start (Odom was nothing great, and they drafted Wade and Butler). It's a shame that they turn from a team with a lot of youth and heart (cough Marlins cough) to the damn Lakers.
July 12, 200422 yr im thrilled about the trade sure we traded some of our future away but, cmon, now we have a guy that can take us to the top plus shaq being here could lure some FAs to come our way
July 12, 200422 yr the possible addition of either Kukoc or Malone fills me with exactly zero excitement. they both suck at this point. go get Derek Fisher maybe.
July 12, 200422 yr damn we have serious holes right now at the forward positions as long as we take care of 1 we will be fine i'd like to see haslem start....could he start at SF if we signed Kukoc or Malone? 454075[/snapback] If we signed Kukoc he would start at SF and Haslem at PF, but then again how many minutes could Kukoc really handle at this point in his career? He could very well end up being our 6th man.
July 12, 200422 yr Rumored that Gary Payton might buyout his contract and join the heat along with Malone. If Im the Heat, I do it.
July 12, 200422 yr The Heat are turning into the team I hate most. Without Shaq, Malone, Phil Jackson, and possibly w/out Kobe...there's no reason to hate them anymore. The hate turns towards the Heat. They were fun and exciting last season, and even though I'm a Magic fan, it was nice to see them use young talent that was predominantly their's from the start (Odom was nothing great, and they drafted Wade and Butler). It's a shame that they turn from a team with a lot of youth and heart (cough Marlins cough) to the damn Lakers. 454179[/snapback] I completely agree with you, I hate what's going on in every way possible.
July 12, 200422 yr 2004 Heat = 2003 Lakers (sub Wade for Bryant) 454261[/snapback] But Bryant is so much better than Wade.
July 12, 200422 yr im not talkin about talent. The Heat are gonna be loaded w/talent next season. I'm talking about my hate for the 03 Lakers/04 Heat. It's a shame, b/c it was so easy to cheer for the Heat (even though Im a Magic fan) last season...
July 12, 200422 yr Karl Malone did not have a bad regular season.I prefer just signing Malone and give Rasual a chance at SF. Remember R.Butler rookie season when he actually had a chance to start and how well he did?He looked better than C.Butler while He started. He AVG. 18 points per game during the stretch. C Shaq PF Malone SF R.Butler SG Jones PG Wade Riley thinks Wade is a point guard so don't expect anyone to sign to start at PG.
July 12, 200422 yr Malone was very good before he got hurt. That was the end of the Lakers chances when he went down.
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