Shaq has just recently made a 1.3 million dollar deal with the Boston Celtics to play for a year. Boston Celtics. Yes, Boston. I was a bit shocked at first, considering the great rivalry between the Celtics and the Lakers, the team at which Shaq was most successful. But it was also a bit shocking considering that the Boston Celtics are somewhat of a mature team. Sure, they needed a new post, but why exactly bring in Shaq. Whether you are a fan or not, Shaq year as a pro player are on hanging from the finest of strings. But somehow it seems that he might be a good match for a team that is bigger, somewhat slower and certainly older then the average new NBA team.
Now, why would Shaq come in to the Celtics and play for 1.3 million dollars. It should not be money, that’s for sure. He has made over 300 million dollars just on salary. If you add the money he receives in endorsements, movies, music, and the money that LSU gave him at the beginning of his career, it is hard to imagine that he is in need of dough.
Maybe, we are looking at it from a wrong perspective. Perhaps Shaq wants to prove himself as a player. Maybe he wants to come to Boston to finish off a great career. But it just doesn’t add up. Shaq has four rings. He has 3 finals MVP, and if we are quite frank about his career, he has nothing to prove. He won the championship back in Orlando, yeah, in those sans Kobe years, and then when the move was right and Phill Jackson (which by the way seems to be the only coach, as well as maybe Pat Rilley to successfully handle him) the Lakers dominated the Championship during three consecutive seasons. So that does not seem to be the answer either.
If we go one and take a guess, we would like to believe that it was more of a convenience situation for both the Celtics and Shaq. They needed a post, Shaq needed a team, the price was a bargain: sign. The thing here, and what we have to be able to put in perspective is that Shaq can still be somewhat of an impressive player under the rim. Except for maybe 2 or 3 players in the league, no one can really keep him off the paint. And take a guess, none of those 2 or 3 players are currently part of the Miami Heat rooster, and that has to bring him some extra kudos over at Boston.
I doubt he is going to be a starter. I am not sure how he will play along Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, Ray Allen and Rajon Rondo. Still, this represents a good new opportunity for the Boston Celtics. It is unclear what Shaq is doing at Boston. I do have a bit more certainty on one other aspect. With this move, he is seriously jeopardizing the fan base he once had at the LA Lakers. I don’t really see the organization retiring his jersey anytime soon. Shaq, the Shaq that help bring in three consecutive rings to the Lakers now play for its No. 1 rival, the Boston Celtics.