The Suns’ decision to trade away Shawn Marion for Shaquille O’Neal raised more than a few eyebrows around the league, but it’s clear that Phoenix did it with the intention of winning now. A healthy (and motivated) Shaq can still shift the balance, especially in the playoffs where he’ll get plenty of rest between games. Last night, the Suns blitzed the Spurs in San Antonio, and Shaq was a big reason why.
ESPN’s Ric Bucher described the game this way:
O’Neal, despite being Shaqled with foul trouble all night, chipped in 16 points and nine rebounds and served as the Big Antidote against Tim Duncan, who needed 21 shots to collect 23 points and had only two in the final 15 minutes. Result: a 96-79 Suns’ win and more woofin’ in the visiting AT&T locker room than has been heard in quite some time. Phoenix is now 2-0 against the Spurs in their Shaq era and, while they fully understand the Spurs are a different animal in the playoffs, they clearly see themselves as a step above the Suns teams San Antonio eliminated from the playoffs three of the past four years.
I didn’t like the trade initially, and I still don’t think it was the right move when looking at the Suns’ long-term prospects. But if Shaq can stay on the court and is playing with energy, he could put Phoenix over the top in the short term.
Whether or not the Suns will face the Spurs in the first two rounds of the playoffs is another matter. Going into tonight’s games, the top six teams are separated by just three games, so a lot could happen over the final few games. The Suns would potentially play the Lakers, Spurs and Hornets in consecutive series – not an easy road.
It looks like the Hornets will be the #1 seed and will face either the Nuggets or the Warriors (probably whomever wins tonight). Dallas looks to be all but a lock for the #7 seed, but the #2-#6 seeds change nightly.
Photos courtesy of Flickr.
