- Bob Young of The Arizona Republic: "For 40 years, Suns fans have been clamoring for their dominant big man. They finally got one, although how dominant Shaquille O'Neal can be when he's only five years younger than the Phoenix franchise remains to be determined. This much we know: When O'Neal is healthy and motivated, he's as unstoppable as the comic-book superhero characters he loves. If O'Neal can regain most of what he had even a few seasons ago, the Suns have just jumped over the Lakers and Spurs in this Western Conference game of leapfrog. At the very least, the Suns and the season just got a whole lot more interesting."
- Scott Bordow of the East Valley Tribune: "I'll say this for Steve Kerr: The man isn't afraid. Phoenix's general manager could have played it safe through the NBA trading deadline. The Suns have the best record in the Western Conference, they're a championship contender and if they don't win a title, he won't take the blame. After all, Kerr didn't build this team. He inherited it. Instead, by dealing Shawn Marion and Marcus Banks to the Miami Heat for Shaquille O'Neal, Kerr has put his reputation on the line. And he's fine with that."
- Greg Cote of The Miami Herald: "Pat Riley has pulled off such a steal here that this trade should be dusted for fingerprints. The Heat sending Shaquille O'Neal to Phoenix and getting in return blue-chip small forward Shawn Marion and point guard Marcus Banks makes you wonder if the Suns' first-year general manager, Steve Kerr, might have been suffering from sunstroke out there in the desert. No disrespect meant, Shaq. You are an all-time great. In three-plus years in Miami, you earned a forever-place in our sporting hearts, not just for being indispensable in the 2006 NBA championship run, but for your humor and force of personality, for the twinkle in your eye. We've never seen anybody else like you down here. Thank you."
- Hal Habib of The Palm Beach Post: "He's a natural introvert who befriended an 81-year-old woman who wrote him a fan letter, greeting her at her retirement center with a hug. He's the guy who, in first appearance after saying he wanted out of Phoenix, implored everyone to 'smile a little bit.' He wants a fat contract, yet gave to charity $1 million from his previous Suns deal. He also built a house for his mother in Las Vegas, marking the first time anyone in his family owned a home. Shawn Marion is just arriving to the Miami Heat in a trade for Shaquille O'Neal, so we'll have plenty of time to get to know him, perhaps better than author Jack McCallum. Good thing."
- Dave Hyde of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel: "For South Florida, the paradox is there's no downside to trading the biggest legend ever to wear the Heat uniform. No tears, either. Not for able bodies like Phoenix's Shawn Marion and Marcus Banks. Not considering O'Neal is approaching 36, is racked by hip and knee injuries and was a $20 million millstone around the Heat for the next two years. This isn't to bash O'Neal. He got old. It happens to all of us. Look in the mirror this morning, if you doubt that. This was the bill come due for that championship season in 2006, too. Heat fans should wish O'Neal nothing but the best today. Overall, his tenure was great for this team. Overall, he blew life into this franchise."
- John Smallwood of the Philadelphia Daily News: "Somewhere in retirement, Jerry West is smiling, knowing that his protégé, Mitch Kupchak, learned his lessons well. If Kupchak wasn't already the NBA's general manager of the year for fleecing the Memphis Grizzlies of All-Star forward Pau Gasol for virtually nothing, the clinching shoe dropped when the Phoenix Suns - in a desperate overreaction - acquired fading center Shaquille O'Neal. In less than a week, Kupchak not only turned the Lakers into the "on-paper" favorite in the Western Conference, he also got the Suns, one of his top rivals in the West, to risk their short- and long-term future on an aging center who, even when healthy, is only a little more than half the player he used to be. Who would have thought the day would come that the team trading for O'Neal may be on the short side? But that's exactly what the Suns, who currently have the best record in the West, have done."
- Sam Smith of The Chicago Tribune: "Phoenix Suns general manager Steve Kerr and coach Mike D'Antoni, the latter the ringmaster for the high-flying, wildest basketball show in the West, said the acquisition Wednesday of Shaquille O'Neal made the Suns a better and more formidable team, especially for a long postseason run. 'If it works, I'm a genius,' Kerr joked during a news conference before the Suns played the Hornets. 'If it doesn't, I'm a moron.'"
- Jackie MacMullan of The Boston Globe: "Kevin Garnett sat out his fifth straight game last night because of an abdominal strain. Most of you undoubtedly consider that bad news. Not me. I say it's a promising development. If I were running the Celtics, I'd make sure Garnett remained in his cocoa sweater and chocolate brown slacks until after the All-Star break. KG is a gamer, an old-school baller who has always insisted on soldiering on with most injuries. That's reason alone to make sure he doesn't aggravate this one, similar to that which ended the career of Hall of Famer Jerry West. Abdominal strains are not something you should play through. If aggravated, they can become debilitating very quickly. Doc Rivers and Danny Ainge need to save Garnett from himself."
- Al Iannazzone of The Record: "Before Tuesday's game, Phil Jackson was asked about the Nets' struggles and Jason Kidd wanting to be traded. As part of his answer, Jackson said, 'Vince Carter seems to be just playing right now -- not playing with that fire that Jason seems to imbue in his game.' Told about it, Carter said, 'Who's that? I don't play for him.' Carter's bosses came to his defense. 'I think it was off-base,' team president Rod Thorn said. 'I don't look at other teams and evaluate,' coach Lawrence Frank said. 'We'r
e concerned about our own things. We support Vince. With the way things are going for us, everyone on the outside is going to be throwing darts at us. Throw them at me. Come at me. But to throw them at one of our players? It's unfounded, it's untrue.'" - Marc Narducci of The Philadelphia Inquirer: "Even though it's been stated here that we don't think Andre Miller will be traded by the trade deadline, all bets are off right now with the crazy happenings going on in the NBA. The Lakers get Pau Gasol. Now Shaq goes to Phoenix for Shawn Marion and Marcus Banks. These moves could enhance the value of a player such as Miller because teams out West may be desperate to make moves to keep up with the Lakers and now the Suns. However, if one looks at the contenders, the one potential playoff team that can use Miller the most in the West is his old Denver team. And we're not sure Denver has what the Sixers are looking for."
- Jay Mariotti of the Chicago Sun-Times: "For a family of four to watch the MiseraBulls, it costs a disgusting $335. And I'm not talking about a high-living night, either, as much as an ordinary, squint-to-see-the-Luvabulls experience in your cavernous United Center: four average-priced tickets, two small beers, four small soft drinks, four hot dogs, parking, two caps, two game programs. It's the fourth-highest ticket in the NBA, a 15.3-percent hike over last season, and I assemble these numbers from Team Marketing Report to illustrate how Jerry Reinsdorf has backstabbed his fan base like few owners in sports. When presented with a prime opportunity last week to improve his dysfunctional, underachieving, unlikable and regressing basketball team, Reinsdorf did not want to make a trade with Memphis for Pau Gasol. Why? Oh, because he didn't want to exceed the league's luxury tax. The same man who has no problem jacking up ticket prices, for a product that has turned out woefully inferior, can't make an exception for Gasol?"
- Ken Berger of Newsday: "It's gotten to the point where I can't stand it anymore. Isiah Thomas, one of the most accomplished basketball figures of the century, sits down in an interview room before a Knicks game and has to act like an obedient pet. This Hall of Famer and two-time NBA champion was asked some fairly innocuous questions last night about a future Hall of Famer and four-time NBA champion, Shaquille O'Neal, getting traded to the Phoenix Suns. And as fearless and flamboyant as he was on the basketball court, Thomas has been rendered basically mute and personality-less in this oozing, infected cavity known as Madison Square Garden. Say what you want about Thomas, about his record here as a coach and president. But it is just not right that someone of his stature in this sport, working in this supposed crown jewel of basketball, has to constantly look to P.R. minions for guidance before he opens his mouth to express his opinion."
- Ross Siler of The Salt Lake Tribune: "The way the Jazz look at it, their acquisition of Kyle Korver on Dec. 29 might have touched off the Western Conference arms race that brought Shaquille O'Neal on Wednesday to the Phoenix Suns. In recent weeks, the L.A. Lakers traded for Pau Gasol, Golden State signed Chris Webber, San Antonio added Damon Stoudamire and the Suns obtained O'Neal from Miami for Shawn Marion and Marcus Banks. With Jason Kidd also potentially on the move, the question facing the Jazz is whether they have to make another deal ahead of the Feb. 21 trade deadline just to keep pace in the conference."
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