A Look Into the Past, Present, and Future of Shaquille O' Neal

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.

Averaging above then twenty and ten and taking his team to such great lengths in only four seasons, one could only dream of the carnage this player could wreak should he develop his fundamentals.

Imagine a Tim Duncan with premier athleticism. Though this dream never came to fruition, O' Neal remains to this day one of the most dangerous post players in the NBA.

LA Lakers

One would not know by looking at the stat sheet, but Shaq's athletic ability was beginning to decline in his LA years. Teaming with a player who would soon garner comparisons to Michael Jordan—Kobe Bryant—Shaq' was able to lead his team to three NBA championships.

What Shaq lacked in fundamentals he made up for in brute strength and a natural feel for the game that allowed him to play smarter and dominate most of the big men that tried to oppose him.

Averaging career highs in points and assists proved that O' Neal was playing smarter despite his decrease in athletic ability. But do not take his slight decline for weakness, Shaq was still, at that point in his career, probably the most athletic, powerful, and dominant big man in the NBA.

Miami Heat

Shaq's time in Miami proved one thing to Superman. He was only mortal.

Though he averaged slightly over twenty and ten in his first season with the Heat and finished second in MVP voting in the closest margin in the award's history, one could tell Shaq was not the huge game changer he once was. Many believed he was still a perennial twenty and ten player, but was not capable of changing the fortunes of a team on the brink of greatness like he once was.

That's where Dwyane Wade came in, and together they lead the team to the NBA championship.

In contrast to D-Wade's quick ascension into superstardom, Shaq's ability on the court took a massive drop. From over twenty and ten in 2005, to seventeen and seven in 2006, and finally fourteen and seven in the 2007 season, the shining Shaq from LA and Orlando was slowly losing his glow.

Phoenix Suns

Midway through the 2007-08 campaign, O' Neal was traded to the Phoenix Suns and there we saw a return of Shaq's double-double form.

Though nowhere near dominant, Shaq was able to average a neat and tidy twelve and ten on a sixty-one percent field goal percentage.

Shaq may not be the offensive threat feared around the league anymore, but he is still able and capable of being a threat in the low block and with an offseason of training camp, should help the Phoenix Suns try to reclaim their upper echelon status.

Many critics, including myself, feel that though the Suns try to portray Shaq as the missing piece to a championship puzzle, Shaq is a superstar reverted to role player status and is but a minor pierce to a puzzle still lacking in major areas.

Shaq was brought in for interior defense, an area he is known for only because of his size, and rebounding, an area in which you could say he excelled in, though many believe with his size and athleticism he should have been a better rebounder. 

In my opinion, Shaq' created more holes then he filled; though this is not an article analyzing the Phoenix Suns team as a whole.

In short, at this point in O' Neal's career, he is needed to rebound the ball, defend the paint, and be a plausible distraction on offense that is capable of attacking the paint should the defense be lax on him.

These three 'tasks', per say, are things that Shaq' can easily provide should he stay focused during the upcoming season. I believe with a lot of hard work and persistence, Shaq and the Phoenix Suns have at least one good run left in them.