Every morning, we compile the links of the day and dump them here…
highlighting the big storyline. Because there's nothing quite as
satisfying as a good morning dump.
Yet if O’Neal blends into the system,
they could have a defensive and physical answer for most of their top
rivals. When healthy and focused, O’Neal remains a skilled center who
can draw double-teams — something Kendrick Perkins has yet to accomplish
— and open up the floor for Paul Pierce and Ray Allen.
“It
is not every day that you can add a player of Shaquille’s caliber to
your team,’’ said Celtics president Danny Ainge in a statement. “His
past experience speaks for itself and we believe that he is a great fit
for our roster, so we’re very excited that he is joining the Celtics
family.
“Some have
questioned his effectiveness, but last year Shaquille was still one of
the league’s better defensive rebounders. This will address a weakness
of ours during last year’s regular season. In addition to rebounding,
Shaq brings post scoring, toughness, and a winning spirit.
Globe – Shaq aboard for two years
Wait? You mean there are positives to Shaq's game and he might be able to help the Celtics? Because all I've been reading are the negatives, i.e. his inability to defend the pick-and roll (Can Chris Mannix send out a Shaq-related tweet without mentioning pick-and-roll?).
I've ome across some tweets stating "(Derrick) Rose and (Joakim) Noah will destroy Shaq and the Celtics on the pick and roll" and "Miami's Big 3 will shred Shaq." To those delusional haters: Shaq is a back-up who will be spending most of his time on the floor against backups. And if he does see significant minutes for whatever reason, is there a team better at defensive rotations than the Celtics? Finally, unlike Mike Brown, Doc Rivers isn't going to put Shaq in poor situations (guarding KG in Game 6 of the playoffs).
I'm not saying Shaq is the answer to all the Celtics problems, but the positives clearly outweigh the negatives.
On Page 2, Larry Hughes is still an option.
Celtics
still need swingman behind Pierce and Allen.Could it be Larry Hughes?
Word is Cs and CHA interested. Hughes looking good in workouts
Yahoo! Sports Marc Spears Twitter
The Celtics second unit backcourt consists of Nate Robinson, Von Wafer, Marquis Daniels and Avery Bradley. I guess you could throw Hughes into that mix, but I don't see how the minutes will shake out.
The rest of the links:
Globe – Quite an attraction in center | Yahoo! – Shaq can serve as enforcer | Herald – Shaq, Celtics get it done | Ainge turns back the clock | CSNNE – Bracing for Shaq attack | Celtics officially sign Shaq | WEEI – Shaq, Celtics teammates before | What Shaq brings to the Celtics | ESPN Boston – MailShaq: Will the big man fit in? |
Add The Sports Daily to your Google News Feed!
