Shaq earning esteem for his play with Celtics

The funniest part of the Shaquille O’Neal phenomenon in Boston is that the big guy was originally an afterthought. As a matter of fact, when last offseason began, Shaq was not even on the Celtics’ radar. Prior to O’Neal signing with Gang Green on Aug. 4, the Celtics had already had what many considered a terrific offseason. Danny Ainge had managed to bring back the Big Three, and added much needed depth with Jermaine O’Neal and Delonte West. Even without Shaq the Celtics were ready for another title run.The fact of the matter is, last season in Cleveland O’Neal made $20 million dollars and failed in his attempt to “win a ring for the King.” Shaq had slowed down considerably and some wondered if he was still having fun playing the game that used to bring him such joy. As the offseason wore on the offers for Shaq were few and far between, prompting Shaq himself to reach out to the Boston Celtics. Shaq said all of the right things, claiming that he no longer wanted to be “the man” and would be more than happy to be a piece off the bench. On Aug. 4, the “Big Leprechaun” signed a 2-year deal with the Celtics for the veteran’s minimum, an $18 million pay cut from what he made last year.The argument can be made that through the first month of the season Shaq could be the Celtics’ MVP. With season averages of 13 points and nearly 9 rebounds per game, he is garnering All-Star attention. This week he logged back-to-back games scoring 25 points and 16 points respectively. The best part is that nobody, not even Doc Rivers, saw this coming.”I honestly didn’t know what to expect,” Rivers admitted. “I would love to tell you that I did, but I really didn’t. I saw him last year in Cleveland, and there were games last year where he looked pretty good, and then there were games that he didn’t. I didn’t know. I knew we were getting size, but that’s about it.”That’s all that the Celtics were counting on from Shaq, his large frame and ability to take up space around the basket. Instead, the Celtics have themselves a player closer to the Shaq of old, prompting Kevin Garnett to say, “Shaq looks like the Shaq of 2000, 2001, 2002, etc.”When Ainge first put this edition of the Celtics together it was the “Big Three” that garnered all of the attention; soon the continued emergence of Rajon Rondo would create the “Big 4.” This season all five Celtics starters are on the All-Star ballot and while the 38-year-old Shaquille O’Neal may still be a long shot, he is certainly no longer an afterthought.