So apparently Shaquille O'Neal is on the verge of being traded to the Phoenix Suns for Shawn Marion and Marcus Banks. The deal has been agreed to by both sides in principle, but Shaq has to pass a physical first, and the deal could be finalized by the end of today.
This is the type of trade that doesn't happen very often. First off, it involves two stars in Marion and Shaq. Then there's the fact that it was completely unexpected, and nobody saw it coming. Finally, and this is the weirdest part of this deal, it's a bad trade for both teams and it's probably worse for Phoenix.
Let's forget about the fact that it was only a few weeks ago that we were all told that O'Neal would be out for the year with a hip problem. I mean, it's amazing how quickly NBA veterans can heal when they're about to go from a horrible team to a team that has a chance to get to the NBA Finals.
The insane part of this deal is, at 35 years old Shaq is already slowing down, and he was never moving that fast to begin with. Speed isn't generally a trait for 7-foot, 300 pound men. So how in the hell is Shaq going to play in Phoenix's system?
This is a team that lives to run all game. Shaq is a player that prefers to plod his way down the court, set up on the blocks, and go to work.
The deal doesn't really work for Miami, either. Sure, they'll be getting O'Neal and the $40 million left on his contract off their books, and they're getting a great player in Marion, but does he fit in Pat Riley's system?
Marion is the type of player that flourished in Phoenix's high-octane offense. Will he be as valuable playing Pat Riley's half-court offense, where defense is priority? I'm hoping that with both Marion and Dwyane Wade the Heat realize they're going to have to pick up the pace a bit.
Still, the biggest reason the Suns traded Marion was because he was tired of being in Phoenix where he's always felt he was unappreciated. He wanted to get out the shadow of Amare Stoudemire, and to a lesser extent, Steve Nash.
Why is Marion going to feel any different in Miami? Dwyane Wade is already the man there, and if Dwyane was the man while Shaq was in town, Marion isn't going to change that.
Miami though has less to lose because the team wasn't going anywhere this year anyway, and they probably weren't going to be that much better next year if they didn't make a change. The Suns on the other hand, are taking a pretty big risk here.
It could pay off huge because maybe Shaq will be magically healed now that he's out from under Riley and playing on a good team. Maybe combined with Amare Stoudemire, the Suns will then run through San Antonio and Los Angeles and finally get to the NBA Finals.
I highly doubt it though.
Foul Balls
Mr. Clemens Goes To Congress - I'm not going to get into how idiotic I find it that Congress feels the need to waste it's time talking to baseball players about whether or not they stuck a few needles in their ass ten years ago. Sure, there are more important things Congress could be doing, like finding out if the Patriots cheated or not, but hey, I don't vote so I shouldn't tell them what to do.
Anyway, Clemens told Congress the same thing he's been saying to us for weeks now. He hasn't done anything.
The star pitcher gave a sworn deposition for about five hours to congressional lawyers behind closed doors Tuesday, addressing his former personal trainer's allegations. And this time, Clemens was under oath.
''I just want to thank the committee, the staff that I just met with. They were very courteous,'' the seven-time Cy Young Award winner said, wearing a pinstriped gray suit instead of a pinstriped New York Yankees uniform. ''It was great to be able to tell them what I've been saying all along -- that I've never used steroids or growth hormone.''
See what Roger did there? He admitted he's done HGH in his denial. He said he hasn't done steroids or growth hormone. No where did he say he's never done
human growth hormone.
Thought you'd get away with it, didn't you Clemens?
Meanwhile, In CrazyLand - As a sports fan that generally considers himself pretty educated and knowledgeable about the world outside of a sporting event, I can fully admit there are some sports fans out there that are complete idiots.
A lot of them live in Green Bay, but not all of them. They also have their fair share up in New England (Okay, we have some here too.) where I'd like to introduce you to the following moron. His name is Victor Thompson, and
he's heartbroken.
If Victor Thompson had hair covering his Patriots-emblazoned skull, he admits he probably would have been pulling it out Sunday evening as New England went down to defeat in Super Bowl XLII.
For the New York Giants, the 17-14 win was the realization of one of the biggest upsets in NFL history.
But the man who tattooed his head like Patriots quarterback Tom Brady's helmet is definitely in the dumps.
"The minute the Giants got that (last second) touchdown I knew it was done ... it killed me," said Thompson.
Thompson, 39, of Laconia has gained both local and national attention for a stunt that saw him getting the Patriots logo tattooed on both sides of his shaved head and Brady's number 12 on the back along with the American flag.
Now I don't think I need to explain to you, the intelligent reader, just how stupid what Thompson has done is. What makes this "story" for me though is this. Emphasis is mine.
He noted that he still has plans to get New England's other championship Super Bowl years tattooed on his head.
Thompson said the trophy will have to wait.
"Maybe next year. As Brady said (after the game) ... we will be back."
Until then Thompson has tentative plans to get his entire head tattooed silver like the real helmet and he is still working on getting Brady himself to sign his skull with a tattoo gun to make it official.
Even Britney Spears thinks this guy is nuts.
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