Shaking Off 300 Pounds Of Rust Will Take Time

Discussion in 'Miami Heat' started by Shapecity, Jan 25, 2007.

  1. Shapecity

    Shapecity S2/JBB Teamster Staff Member Administrator

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    <div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Uh, check that. Used a few too many "A's" there. Got a little carried away.

    Shaquille O'Neal returned to the Heat lineup Wednesday night after a 37-game absence. He even did some good things in what devolved into a 96-94 overtime loss to the Indiana Pacers at Conseco Fieldhouse.

    But there was very little about his reappearance that was even remotely ominous for future Heat opponents.

    "Real rusty," was Shaq's honest self-assessment. "I was still kind of tentative."

    Oh, it's a good sign he was able to come off the bench and play 14 minutes behind Alonzo Mourning. There will be no Heat repeat without significant playoff contributions from the man who so loathes the regular season.

    And it's great to have the world's biggest kid back smiling, cracking jokes and reminding teammates this is a game they play for a living. Before entering with 4:49 left in the first quarter, he even shook hands with an elderly Pacers employee at the scorer's table.

    It's also nice of Shaq to start giving the Heat a return on its $243,902.43 per-game investment. We're talking $9 million in salary during that lengthy absence.

    But after 77 days to rest and rehab his surgically repaired left knee, it's going to take time for him to regain his timing and rhythm, not to mention his balance.

    Jermaine O'Neal sent him sprawling to the deck with a blocked shot in the first half. Troy Murphy sent him stumbling with a clean strip under the basket. Jeff Foster caused a simple entry pass from James Posey to float over Shaq's outstretched hand.

    And somebody named Ike Diogu blew past him on the baseline, forcing Shaq into a reaching foul. At that awkward moment, Shaq looked like he'd have trouble guarding Ike Turner, much less Diogu.

    Too often this Diesel appeared to be running on ethanol.

    That's not to say there weren't some uplifting moments as well. Shaq did grab five rebounds, two of which led to his only field goals on a five-point night. He also blocked a shot and altered a few others.

    He ran the floor fairly well, got position on the low blocks and set some strong screens.</div>

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