There has been a lot of talk the last few days about Shaquille O’Neal in contract discussions with the Atlanta Hawks. Althought that seems like a pretty juicy destination for the big fella, NBA Fanhouse today announced they have a source with information that Shaq’s number one choice is to sign with the San Antonio Spurs. If you stop to think about it, this could mean big things for both Shaq at the end of his career, and the Spurs as they slowly decline as a perennial contender. Via Fanhouse today:
Shaquille O’Neal’s first choice is to join the San Antonio Spurs for one final run at a fifth NBA title, and he wants to play two more seasons before retiring, a source told FanHouse on Wednesday….
The source said O’Neal said the Spurs and Atlanta are at the top of his list since there is interest with those teams on both sides. FanHouse’s Tim Povtak reported Monday the link between O’Neal and the Hawks, and there were indications from San Antonio on Wednesday that the Spurs do indeed have interest….
“He’d really like to go to San Antonio and team with Timmy (Duncan), and try to win one more title,” said the source about O’Neal, who starred in high school in San Antonio.
Spurs general manager R.C. Buford declined comment.
Honestly, this could actually work. We have seen a decline in Tim Duncan’s efficiency the past couple seasons mainly because he has been logging too many minutes at the 5 spot and not enough at his preferred power forward position. These two have been long time rivals, but who better to execute the chippy playoff style grind it out game on both offense and defense than Timmy D, and Shaq Diesel?
Shaq would fit perfectly into the Spurs slow it down style of play, and they would have the option of sliding Timmy into the center position when Shaq is resting if they wanted to let Parker and Ginobili run the floor a bit.
If there is one thing the Mavericks i’ve learned over the years its that you can’t underestimate the Spurs. Even this year they took a lot of people by surprise who failed to realize their less than stellar regular season record was more to do with injuries to Parker, Ginobili, and Duncan than their decline due to age.
Shaq to the Spurs? I give it a thumbs up for both Shaq and the Spurs. And if there is anyone that can squeeze every last drop of efficiency left out of the big fella, it’s super coach Gregg Popovich and his team….
