Seriously, did you know Shaq was going to be this good?

[nba is the worst]

Yes I did. He played incredibly well during the playoffs last year. I never once listened to the haters who said he made cleveland worse. He mad that team ALOT better. Just like he did for us. <3 Shaq

  It's hard to dispute that he made the Cavs easier for us to beat, whether that translated to better overall or not.

Anything can be disputed - IMO it was leBron's tanking that made the Cavs "easier to beat".

Shaq wasn't 100%, but still averaged 13.5/5 in just 23:08 minutes - and in the key game 4, had 17/5 to Perk's 0/6

[Fafnir]

When Shaq was on the court, the Celtics scored more points on the Cavs and gave up less than when he was off it.

Both unadjusted and adjusted +/- point out that he hurt the Cavs severely when he played.

[ScoobyDoo]

I was optimistic about it. My major concern wasn't whether Shaq could produce still; he's 7 foot+ and 320 and is a great athlete. I was more concerned about his mental attitude.

However, I made a post that I thought the focus and dedication of Pierce, Ray, KG & Rondo would end up having a big impact on Shaq. That is a much different scenario than being around LeCircus and abunch of young guys in Cleveland or Wade and Miami.

I also said I thought KG would have a big impact on Shaq's mentality. Actually, I think Shaq has loosened up the Celts and the Celts have gotten Shaq more serious.

Shaq is a champion, He won four rings and he wa sa real workhorse with a great motor and big heart in his day. You never loose those things.

He is now in a serious environment and he is buying in to a program because he's around alot of serious vets and he respects that and he respects them. He mayt be a clown but when the ball goes up he takes it seriously with these guys.

Plus he's motivated to hammer Kobe. That's a good combo.

If Shaq does nothign more than score 10 points, grab 5-6 boards and hammer the right people coming down the lane to the tune of 4-5 hard fouls a night - and we stay healthy - we are going to steam roll to a championship. It's not even close this year - including the lakers.     

[BballTim]

Yes I did. He played incredibly well during the playoffs last year. I never once listened to the haters who said he made cleveland worse. He mad that team ALOT better. Just like he did for us. <3 Shaq

  It's hard to dispute that he made the Cavs easier for us to beat, whether that translated to better overall or not.

Anything can be disputed - IMO it was leBron's tanking that made the Cavs "easier to beat".

Shaq wasn't 100%, but still averaged 13.5/5 in just 23:08 minutes - and in the key game 4, had 17/5 to Perk's 0/6

  Was Lebron tanking during the regular season as well? Get serious.

[BballTim]

Shaq wasn't 100%, but still averaged 13.5/5 in just 23:08 minutes - and in the key game 4, had 17/5 to Perk's 0/6

 By the way, you're wrong end of the court. Shaq was anchoring a defense that made Rondo look like the league MVP while Perk was helping anchor a defense that was generally able to keep Lebron, Wade and Howard in check.

[Brendan]

On the CLE +/- thing - it could also be that the Cavs didn't integrate him well and BOS can... not necessarily a sign that Shaq wouldn't work here.

[CNYCeltsfan]

I thought Shaq would do well, but not this well.  And he has the right personality to fit in with the other guys, probably the perfect personality.  I love what I see for the big guy and would love for him to win his final two rings here in green.

[LB3533]

Shaq wasn't 100%, but still averaged 13.5/5 in just 23:08 minutes - and in the key game 4, had 17/5 to Perk's 0/6

 By the way, you're wrong end of the court. Shaq was anchoring a defense that made Rondo look like the league MVP while Perk was helping anchor a defense that was generally able to keep Lebron, Wade and Howard in check.

We didn't really hold Lebron in check in the playoffs nor did we stop Wade at all in the playoffs.

Perk can play Howard straight up so whatever numbers Howard got were by design.

Also against the Celtics in the playoffs, I am pretty sure the big negative plus/minus was the result of Jamison being abused by KG not Perk abusing O'Neal.

[GreenFaith1819]

I was hoping he'd do this well, but had no idea it would click like this.

No idea. I am pleasantly shocked - moreso from the fact that he is doing this at 38?

We had another 38 YO center in Green back in 07-08 in PJ Brown. He was a big help as well, and it lead to Banner 17.

Shaq is really a breath of fresh air for this team. I LOL'd at The Association part where he gave Perk that kiss on the cheek.

Shaq is a mess .

He's already won the rings, but wants one more. Except this time he has maybe the most help around him that he has had in his career - arguably.

He wants to be here. He wants to win it, one more time. He thought he had an opportunity in CLE, but now sees this time around as potentially being his Swan song.

He won't let the Green down.

[nba is the worst]

Yes I did. He played incredibly well during the playoffs last year. I never once listened to the haters who said he made cleveland worse. He mad that team ALOT better. Just like he did for us. <3 Shaq

  It's hard to dispute that he made the Cavs easier for us to beat, whether that translated to better overall or not.

Anything can be disputed - IMO it was leBron's tanking that made the Cavs "easier to beat".

Shaq wasn't 100%, but still averaged 13.5/5 in just 23:08 minutes - and in the key game 4, had 17/5 to Perk's 0/6

  Was Lebron tanking during the regular season as well? Get serious.

LeBron avgd 38 ppg vs the celtics in the regular season - with a couple of 20+-pt quarters.

It was the east playoff semifinals games 3-6 that he only managed to shoot 18-53, .340, 2-13, .154 3-pt for 21.3 pts in 43:55 min pg

[BballTim]

Yes I did. He played incredibly well during the playoffs last year. I never once listened to the haters who said he made cleveland worse. He mad that team ALOT better. Just like he did for us. <3 Shaq

  It's hard to dispute that he made the Cavs easier for us to beat, whether that translated to better overall or not.

Anything can be disputed - IMO it was leBron's tanking that made the Cavs "easier to beat".

Shaq wasn't 100%, but still averaged 13.5/5 in just 23:08 minutes - and in the key game 4, had 17/5 to Perk's 0/6

  Was Lebron tanking during the regular season as well? Get serious.

LeBron avgd 38 ppg vs the celtics in the regular season - with a couple of 20+-pt quarters.

It was the east playoff semifinals games 3-6 that he only managed to shoot 18-53, .340, 2-13, .154 3-pt for 21.3 pts in 43:55 min pg

  So, basically, your comments have nothing to do with anything, as it was readily apparent during the regular season that the Cavs would have a very tough time beating the Celts with Shaq playing.

[indeedproceed]

FTR...I took about 20 mins and skimmed comments from everyone in the thread who said "Yes, I knew how good he would be". You see, I hate 'I told you so' threads, esp when the 'I told you so' was an out and out guess, or just a 'gut feeling'. I don't like that it kind of puts down all the 'nerds' that believed in 'proof' or 'logic' as non-believers or whatever.

Sooooooo anywho, I checked out everyone who said they knew Shaq would be 'this good' before the season. I was pleasantly surprised. While not everyone was onboard with the consistency and fit Shaq has had (some had reservations about conditioning etc...) only one person said blatantly that Shaq wouldn't work out.

[Chris]

I thought there was a good chance Shaq could cause chemistry issues, and I am pretty sure I was concerned about his fit in the system.  I am pleasantly surprised, although still cautious.  It is a long season, and there is still a large landmine looming by the name of Kendrick Perkins. 

I love what Shaq brings to this team, particularly from a chemistry perspective, but after the dramatic turns this team took last year, I am making a point not to get too high or too low on anyone until the playoffs get here.

[Brendan]

FTR...I took about 20 mins and skimmed comments from everyone in the thread who said "Yes, I knew how good he would be". You see, I hate 'I told you so' threads, esp when the 'I told you so' was an out and out guess, or just a 'gut feeling'. I don't like that it kind of puts down all the 'nerds' that believed in 'proof' or 'logic' as non-believers or whatever.

Sooooooo anywho, I checked out everyone who said they knew Shaq would be 'this good' before the season. I was pleasantly surprised. While not everyone was onboard with the consistency and fit Shaq has had (some had reservations about conditioning etc...) only one person said blatantly that Shaq wouldn't work out.

IP - don't get what you are saying here.

[guava_wrench]

I had no idea he would run the floor this hard. I'd be surprised if many people really expected him to run so hard. He didn't have to run in Clev because Clev never ran except on Lebron steals.

I did expect a lot of lob passes from Rondo. I was concerned with the defensive side, but I also didn't expect KG to be this good.