Shaquille O' Neal. When one utters that name to a crowd of people, many pictures pop into their head.
Will Shaq' be remembered as one of the most athletic, dominant, and powerful big men to play in the NBA while becoming one of the most media-adored superstars of his generation; or will he be remembered as an arrogant, boastful, and ego-maniacal player who razed as many teams to the ground as he raised to the peak?
Player Profile: Then and Now
Shaquille O'Neal is probably the most physical, intimidating, and powerful center to ever play in the NBA. Unlike Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, he is not known for his post moves or signature finesse weapons in his arsenal, but rather for his ability to run through and over any player foolish enough to guard him one-on-one during his prime.
Unlike Hakeem, he is not known for his prowess nor intelligence on defense, but rather for his ability to intimidate and smother foes attempting to score on him in the paint.
In his best years, Shaq' was athletic enough to run the floor, finish strong, rebound, block shots, defend (moderately), and score with the best big men in the league. He was strong enough to finish each offensive possession with a strong jam or get to the line (which is nullified by his extremely poor free throw shooting) so well that the league had to change the way they officiated just to contain this monster.
Who needed post moves when you were strong and tall enough to make a simple hook shot over your defender when, on rare occasions, you couldn't just dunk it in their faces?
Who needed sound fundamentals and persistence on defense when you were large and intimidating enough to keep slashers out of the paint and block weak shot attempts?
Shaquille O'Neal has declined faster then many fundamentally sound big men in the league for a variety of reasons.
Never having learned most fundamentals and even ignoring the advice or some proficient post players, Shaq has always relied on two or three rudimentary moves to power, blow past, or hook over his man.
Now that his athleticism is on the decline, his moves become less effective and he has no other means to score then what he has been using to dominate for many years.
On defense, Shaq was considered an above average defender mostly because of his size, but now that he is slower and less mobile than he has ever been, his defensive liabilities were brought to light. This was especially obvious during the recent San Antonio Playoff Series, in which Shaq was unable to help defend the Tony Parker-Tim Duncan pick and roll.
Orlando Magic
Fresh from the tutelage of legend, Magic Johnson, Shaq exploded onto the scene in 1992 by averaging an amazing twenty-three points and just under fourteen rebounds. The three seasons following his rookie season showed a slight decrease in his rebounding but a substantial increase in his scoring; putting him into the upper echelon of NBA superstars at such an early age.
Teaming with his first two-guard, Penny Hardaway, Shaq came just short of his first NBA championship by getting swept in the finals by the more experienced Houston Rockets squad led by top-five center, Hakeem 'The Dream' Olajuwon.
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