The NBA season is less than two months old and already some strange and unpredictable things have happened.
The Atlanta Hawks are 14-12, Richard Jefferson is fifth in scoring, the Portland Trailblazers have the NBA's longest winning streak of the season, and the first coach to get the axe was not Isaiah Thomas.
One thing that may come as a surprise to some but not to others is the Miami Heat's record of 8-20. The same team that was celebrating the franchise's first NBA championship just 18 months ago is now 12 games under .500 in the Eastern Conference.
Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Lakers are 18-10 and have posted impressive wins over the Suns (twice), Nuggets (twice), Spurs, Pistons, Jazz, and Rockets. The Lakers have as many wins over those six playoff teams as the Heat have against the entire NBA.
The Heat and the Lakers will be tied together as long as both Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O'Neal are active. Since Miami has won their championship, it has been easy to declare the Heat the winners of the trade.
Miami made the trade because they had a goal of winning an NBA title—and they accomplished that goal. But with each day that passes and each game that Shaq gets paid a quarter of a million dollars to put up 13 points and eight rebounds, the trade looks more and more lopsided in the Lakers favor.
For starters, the Heat team that won the title in 2005-6 was 50-32. They won one regular-season game against the NBA's other division winners that year. And yet, they chose to keep the same group of players together going into the 2006-7 season.
To call their championship lucky would be a gross understatement. They benefitted from playing a tired Pistons team in the Eastern Conference Finals, and were given a generous officiating crew in the Finals against Dallas—D-Wade shot 96 free throws in six games.
You can't blame the Heat for either of those things, since they had no control over them. What you can blame Pat Riley for is thinking that the same group of players, albeit one year older, would be able to compete for another title.
You can blame him even more for thinking that Smush Parker, Ricky Davis and Mark Blount would be enough to make them contenders again this year.
It may sound like I'm contradicting myself because I criticize them for not making changes after 2006 and then blast them for actually making changes after 2007. The difference is that they let guys go instead of either trading them, and had no back-up plan in place if those guys left.
Forbes Magazine recently released a report on the world's wealthiest sports owners. Heat owner Micky Arison was listed third in the world, but first in the United States. He's wealthier than Mark Cuban, Daniel Snyder, and even Paul Allen.
Which makes it all the more puzzling that Arison was willing to let Jason Kapono, Eddie Jones, and James Posey walk away from the Heat because he was scared to pay the luxury tax—yet he wasn't afraid of giving Shaq a five-year, $100 million extension that still has two-and-a-half years left on it.
13 comments Last one added about 1 year ago — Leave a Comment
Anonymous about 1 year ago
caron for kwame was terrible, however at the time lakers were desparate for a center. i think lakers are going to the finals if they can have odom healthy
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Jack Vuylsteke about 1 year ago
First of all, really good article. It's not a bad thought, but the Lakers still haven't really done anything since they traded Shaq except struggle to keep Kobe happy on a team that really has no chance at winning the West (this year). Shaq was integral in not only winning that title in Miami, but also putting fans in the seats at Heat games and creating that South Beach image the Heat have now, so I still think it's a pretty easy call, especially since the players LA got for Shaq are nonexistent now on that team. Wade already has a title, which makes it tough for him to complain about winning another one. The team they have in Miami right now isn't as bad as their record shows, but they lost every player they have who could make an outside shot, which took away a whole facet of their game.
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Andrew Ungvari about 1 year ago
The Lakers inability to advance in the playoffs isn't only because they traded Shaq. It's because they traded Rick Fox & Gary Payton to Boston, allowed Derek Fisher to sign with Golden State, watched Karl Malone and Horace Grant retire and replaced all of them with Lamar Odom, Caron Butler, Brian Grant, Chucky Atkins, Jumaine Jones and Chris Mihm. I'd say that's a bit of a downgrade. To say they "haven't really done anything" is a bit of an exaggeration. I'm not sure if you're referring to their playoff success or team management. If you're referring to playoff success you're absolutely right. If you're referring to building a team, I'd strongly disagree with you. Just reread what I wrote above. Do the Lakers have a chance to win the West this year? No. Are they building a solid foundation through the draft and via trade? Absolutely. Would you rather own the Lakers or the Heat right now? If you say the Heat I'll call you a liar. Shaq wasn't integral in winning the title. Not unless you count being double-teamed as integral. He averaged 13.6 ppg and 10.2 rpg in those Finals. He may have put fans in seats but right now he's doing a great job of keeping them away. What exactly is the "South Beach image the Heat have now"? Lamar Odom is still a Laker and his 19.4 ppg and 13 rpg in last year's playoff series against Phoenix doesn't scream "nonexistent". Those are MJ numbers compared to what Shaq is doing now. My guess is that if the Heat offered Shaq for Odom straight up the Lakers would turn it down and if the Lakers offered LO for Shaq then Shaq would be on a plane before Riles hung up the phone. The Lakers haven't struggled to keep Kobe happy. They've struggled to make the team better. The two are different and the same. I think Wade has every right to complain about the direction of the team seeing that he's seen player after player leave without anything of equal or greater value being brought in to replace them. If he would have known the 2007-8 Heat would field a starting lineup of Ricky Davis and Dorrell Wright, I seriously doubt he would have signed that extension. Asking a player to commit his prime years to a franchise that will be back to square one in two years is something to complain about. Just ask Kobe who has 3 rings and spent two of his prime years on a team at square one. Miami might not be as bad as their record shows. But they could also be worse. They are 1-6 in what could be the worst division in sports. They lost again tonight. They didn't lose every player that could make an outside shot. They let each of them leave. Big difference. My article wasn't about what the Lakers have done since trading Shaq. It was about where the teams are at three and a half years later. One team sacrificed the present for the future while the other sacrificed the future for the present.
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Dwight Palmer about 1 year ago
This was a well written article. I do, however, think that the Lakers could play for a Western Conference Title, this year. though this team is still a work in progress. The tools are there and winning tough games builds an expectation of success. If no one gets hurt, they will continue to improve as a unit. Now they have two people, (KB and DFish) who know how to win as starters. This type of experience on the floor gives them an advantage over Denver, N.O., Golden State, Portland and any other Western Conference team that has not been to a championship. There is a big difference in thinking you can win and knowing you can win. This difference was the key to Miami's win against Dallas. Miami had "The Glove", Shaq, and Alonzo. These guys had enough experience to carry their team though adversity. Dallas was the better team, but did not have the mental toughness. This same type of experience will help the Lakers this season.
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Anonymous about 1 year ago
Mitch Kupchak has always gotten a bum rap from the local LA crowd -- mostly because he isn't Jerry West. You've done a good job of connecting the dots in stating that the success of the present Laker team has a lot to do with the Shaq trade (and you're right, I wouldn't trade Lamar straight up for the current version of Shaq -- even if they were maing the same money, and they're not). You can even say the draft of Bynum is directly related to the Shaq trade and the Laker's quick trip to the lottery. So let's see, we want to rescind the Shaq trade and give Miami back Lamar, Kwame, Jordan, and Bynum. I don't think so. (OK, they can have Brian Grant).
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A J about 1 year ago
Very good article It was always obvious that it made no sense to pay Shaq the 30 million or so he wanted when he was already showing serious signs of wear and tear. Right now it is real easy to be enthusiastic about the Lakers, but the real issue was whether Shaq was worth 100 to 150 million for the next four or five years. Whether the Lakers win anything or not doesn't change the wisdom of not falling into that trap. No general manager makes every right decision, don't forget the sainted Jerry West traded Sam Perkins for Benoit Benjamin and Eddie Jones and Elden Campbell for Glen Rice. Kudos to Mitch Kupchak. This has to be his best C'mas in awhile, and lets not forget the national media crucified him for trading Shaq. AJ
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Anonymous about 1 year ago
I think the Lakers are a very good team, and they are just going to continue to become better. They have the right components, and in a couple years, this team will be solid. I think the Phoenix Suns are going downhill. There whole team is tied together with Nash. Nash is only getting older. Soon, Nash is going to be too hold to keep the Suns tied together, and the Lakers will take the Pacific division Crown. I see nothing great for Miami, they seem to be doing worse every year. I love the article
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Anonymous about 1 year ago
Not to nitpick, but Micky Arison isn't wealthier than Paul Allen. Unless 6 billion somehow got bigger than 18 billion.
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Andrew Ungvari about 1 year ago
I know you're not being a nitpick but don't blame the messenger. I was only reporting what Forbes Magazine reported. Here's a link from SportsbyBrooks:
http://www.sportsbybrooks.com/miami-heat-holder-3rd-richest-sports-owner-in-world-14956
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Marc about 1 year ago
Great article and one that thoroughly enjoyed reading. I disagree on only one point. I am not currently convinced that the Lakers are not yet capable of being the #1 team in the West. It is true that San Antonio currently lays claim to the #1 spot, but lets not forget that the Lakers, even with Smush Parker at the helm, were competitive with the Spurs until they got clobbered by the injury bug. This year's team is greatly improved and as such I don't feel it unrealistic to think they are currently capable of taking the #1 spot.
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Andrew Ungvari about 1 year ago
Marc - I certainly hope you're right. You can't compare what the Lakers would do against the Spurs in the regular season to the playoffs. Especially a veteran team. Popovich just paces his teams during the regular season to ensure they're healthy and so that he figures out his best rotation. You can't judge the Spurs until they go on their rodeo road-trip in February. Last year the Spurs won 25 of their last 31 games and they threw away the last three when it was evident they weren't going to catch the Mavs. None of those 31 games were against the Lakers. The Spurs don't care about home-court advantage. They can beat any team anywhere. The good news is that Fish is back and he seems to play his best against them. Until the Lakers learn to stop Tony Parker they won't be able to beat the Spurs in a 7-game series. Just check out what the league's best point guards have done against the Lakers this year. November 6th, Chris Paul: 19 points, 21 assists. November 13th, Tony Parker: 26 points, 9 assists. November 25th, Jason Kidd: 15 points, 14 assists. November 30th, Deron Williams: 35 points. December 21st, Andre Miller: 21 points, 8 assists. December 25th, Steve Nash: 24 points and 14 assists. Only two of those games were wins. Let's see, Marc. I'm glad you enjoyed it.
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Ron Suan about 1 year ago
The only thing that was wrong about the decision to trade Shaq was the return they got for him. Since Miami wanted to win bad, maybe the Lakers could have gotten Wade instead of Butler. Also, Dallas was open to a trade for anybody but Dirk Nowitzki. Nash, Josh Howard, and change to play with Kobe would have been sick. While it took three painful years for the Lakers to finally reap the harvest of their rebuilding, I'm glad those three years are gone and a new day is dawning on the Lakers.
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Andrew Ungvari about 1 year ago
Ron - I had a bigger problem with the Lakers not giving up at least one of their bad contracts in the trade. How do you not force the Heat to take back Devean George's horrible deal? I don't believe Riley when he says the toughest decision he had to make was not including Wade. With Butler one year away from free agency and Wade three years away, Riley knew he would only have to pay Shaq and Wade a combined $32 million since Wade was still making rookie money. If the veterans like Payton and Mourning don't take minimum deals then the Heat would have been forced to pay Shaq, Wade, Walker, Williams and Posey more than the entire cap. The fact that he was able to add those veterans for nothing is the reason they even had a chance to win the title. As for the Dallas deal, you're forgetting that Nash was a free agent and would have had to been signed and then traded. All indications are that he had his heart set on Phoenix. His parents were still living in the area from the first time he played there. Howard was still playing on a rookie contract so the only thing the Lakers could have received from Dallas was Keith Van Horne and/or Marquis Daniels and even that wouldn't have matched up the salaries. Keep in mind that the Lakers were also forced to accommodate Shaq's desire to play in a warm-weather city. Indiana probably had the most to offer (Jermaine O'Neal, Ron Artest) but Shaq wouldn't go there. He also would only play for a team that was willing to give him an extension. All those factors tied the Lakers up and yet they still wanted to make him happy. That's why I'm so angry at the way Shaq treated the organization upon his departure. That's the thanks they get? Orlando had already made the T-Mac trade. Dallas wouldn't part with Dirk in addition to being the same conference. The Lakers had no choice but to send him to Miami and Riles knew it. Can't blame Kupchak, though. That one was all on Buss. From a basketball standpoint, horrible trade. But from a business standpoint, it was a brilliant move to get rid of him.
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