Shaquille O'Neal is continuing to make his intentions clear and it appears as though the future Hall of Famer wants to be a Boston Celtic next season.
According to Fanhouse, sources close to Shaq have confirmed his continued interest in the Celtics.
"He only wants to go to a team with a chance to win it all,'' one source
said. "That's a short list. Even for the money, he's not going to a
non-contender.''
While O'Neal is clearly not the same player who won three MVPs, or even the player who won an NBA title with the Miami Heat, Shaq and Boston may be good fits for one another.
The Celtics bankroll is low, and the club can only sign players to minimum contracts going forward. Shaq, coincidentally, is already as rich as can be and would prefer to pay for a contender, even if his salary is low.
Boston also needs big men. While Jermaine O'Neal clearly will bolster the interior that is losing Rasheed Wallace and missing Kendrick Perkins for the time being, another experienced big man could do a lot of good.
Shaq, may also prove useful against some of the Celtics' biggest rivals. Miami's newly-assembled super team has one glaring weakness in poor big men, and Shaq could help create a mismatch.
Orlando features Dwight Howard, the league's best center, and it wouldn't hurt to have a huge body like Shaq to neutralize him. The Cleveland Cavaliers signed O'Neal last season with exactly that in mind, but due to their early playoff exit, that match-up never came to be.
Chicago's center, Joakim Noah, is undersized and may be a favorable foe for O'Neal in half-court sets.
Finally, the Los Angeles Lakers' victory over the Celtics in the NBA Finals this past year can most directly be attributed to their dominance inside.
Shaq isn't the same guy that he once was, but his 12 points and seven rebounds in 23 minutes per game last year in Cleveland was a definite contribution.
If he is willing to play for the minimum, he could be a good fit in Boston.
