Shaq's Next 'Sidekick'?

[Flash3]

You have so many that say Shaq can make any 2-guard he plays with into a much better player/All-Star and what not. You even have quite a few continue to say to this very day that Shaq made Penny, Kobe, & Wade, to which I say otherwise, TOTALLY!

So, if this holds true (of Shaq being able to make any 2-guard he plays with into one of the better ones in the league), would Bell be that "sidekick" who Shaq helps turn into the next one?

[BBallFreak]

Did he turn Eddie Jones into the next one? Nope. And he was a lot younger when he played with them...

[Bucky O'Hare]

Raja and Shaq aka the Anti-Kobe Klub.

[Flash3]

Did he turn Eddie Jones into the next one? Nope. And he was a lot younger when he played with them...

My point exactly.

When Kobe & Wade, most recently were playing extremely well and winning titles with Shaq, you had quite a few saying that just about any 2-guard can be put alongside Shaq, and you'd get the same results. Yet, we've seen otherwise.....

[Flash is the Future]

Barbosa might play better because of Shaq. But Shaq really doesn't have a sidekick at this point in his career. Shaq's the sidekick.

[Buckeye-NBAFan]

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My point exactly.

When Kobe & Wade, most recently were playing extremely well and winning titles with Shaq, you had quite a few saying that just about any 2-guard can be put alongside Shaq, and you'd get the same results. Yet, we've seen otherwise.....

No one has ever said you could plug any (Larry Hughes) 2G around Shaq and still win the title. You're making things up. Wade never would have won with Odom and Butler instead of Shaq, and Shaq was the MVP of the Lakers, not Kobe.

[prophet_of_rage]

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My point exactly.

When Kobe & Wade, most recently were playing extremely well and winning titles with Shaq, you had quite a few saying that just about any 2-guard can be put alongside Shaq, and you'd get the same results. Yet, we've seen otherwise.....

Who was saying you could plug any two guard in and you'd get the same results. The names I heard thrown around when these arguments were made were T-Mac, Carter and the like. It wasn't that Shaq made any two guard the best in the league, but the elite wing scorers next to him were elevated by his presence, which is true. His elite guards were all considered the best in the league when they played with him and then were not when he left.

Kobe has fought his way back to the top, but now that Wade has played without Shaq for an extended period and isn't winning despite putting up stats you don't really see those Wade is better than Kobe threads you used to see, do you?

That was the Shaq effect. Now he's a supporting player although he's still going to be a space eater. On Phoenix he's not going to help the guards so much as he is going to help Stoudemire.

[East_Coast]

At this point in his career, Shaq is more of a sidekick himself. He needs a dominant wing player to have a positive impact more than that player needs him.

It will be interesting to see how he and Nash work things out.

[Man_Up]

Shaq is definitely a sidekick at this point in his career.

He's not making anymore Penny's, Kobes, and Wades.

and it's not a coincidence that where ever shaq has been there's also been a star SG.

[Bulls_Dynasty6]

Shaq is definitely a sidekick at this point in his career.

He's not making anymore Penny's, Kobes, and Wades.

and it's not a coincidence that where ever shaq has been there's also been a star SG.

Agreed. I just don't see Shaq playing hero in Phoenix. The rest of his career he will probably be the sidekick because of his regression. Plus, the real reason why he was traded was because they want him to fill the defensive hole, less so to contribute on offense. And then he's not even good at that anymore.

[Flash3]

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No one has ever said you could plug any (Larry Hughes) 2G around Shaq and still win the title. You're making things up. Wade never would have won with Odom and Butler instead of Shaq, and Shaq was the MVP of the Lakers, not Kobe.

Just a season ago, we had plenty saying that you can plug just about any 2-guard (in the likes of a VC, Joe Johnson, Ray Allen) and have the similar/equal success as that of the likes of what Wade/Kobe experienced alongside Shaq.

btw, there was no way, as the team was constructed, that Wade was going to win a title w/Odom/Butler. That was clear.....

[Flash3]

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Agreed. I just don't see Shaq playing hero in Phoenix. The rest of his career he will probably be the sidekick because of his regression. Plus, the real reason why he was traded was because they want him to fill the defensive hole, less so to contribute on offense. And then he's not even good at that anymore.

Shaq may not be the 1st or 2nd option throughout the game, but you'll see him be the 1st option probably early in the 1st quarter, to get the team going/set the tone, and also into the 4th.

But, for the rest of the game, he'll probably play 3rd fiddle to Nash & Amare, but still setting up his shooters across the wings for an easy look from deep.

[giordunk]

Lol I like it. Shaq and Raja the anti-Kobe duo.

[NetsForce]

I could see DJ Blueberry becoming the next Kobe.

[prophet_of_rage]

You have so many that say Shaq can make any 2-guard he plays with into a much better player/All-Star and what not. You even have quite a few continue to say to this very day that Shaq made Penny, Kobe, & Wade, to which I say otherwise, TOTALLY!

So, if this holds true (of Shaq being able to make any 2-guard he plays with into one of the better ones in the league), would Bell be that "sidekick" who Shaq helps turn into the next one?

You're being a bit dishonest in your question. First you say that so many say that Shaq can make any 2 guard he plays with into a much better player/All-Star and what not. So that means can Shaq improve a guard's game. Yes he can.

Then you transform that into so if Shaq can make any 2 guard he plays with into one of the better ones in the league, would Bell be that "sidekick" who Shaq helps turn into the next one.

Raja Bell is an ordinary shooting guard. Can Shaq's game make him better. Yes. But he was never possessed of a Kobe talent or a Wade talent. Players like Carter, T-Mac, Johnson, Allen, are.

The Shaq effect has always been to take players a level up. Ordinary to good. Good to all-star. All-star to elite. Elite to _THE_.

[Flash3]

-I should've laid out the caliber of guards I was speaking about, that was my error. -- It would be silly for anyone to think that a Larry Hughes/Deshan Stevenson type SG alongside Shaq and nothing more can amount to anything, really.

-But, Bell is a player who's intriguing. He's a good shooter from range, and he's shown the ability to get to the hoop at times, but not consistently. Given the attention Shaq, Amare, & Nash will garner, will Bell find a way to flourish & excel even more so? -- Not, within the likes of a Penny/Wade/Kobe, but to the 'next' level he can reach, w/ever that may end up being.....

[jefe]

I think it'll be that Steve Nash kid - he's got potential

[dvdrdiscs]

Making a SG better is such a load of crap. Making the job easier is probably the better term to explain the success of Penny, Kobe, and Wade.

As many of you suggested, he can't magically make a Larry Hughes better. Why? Because Larry Hughes himself doesn't possess the individual talent. Steve Nash can only do so much in setting up his teammates but in the end, it's up to his teammates to have the skill and confidence to sink that open jumper.

So in regards to Shaq, same thing. He makes the game easier for that person because of the adjustment of the defense. Some of you are making it out like Shaq magically turned a player's skill up a notch. That player STILL has to possess the talent and they would have that talent with or without Shaq.

[Mad Balla 15]

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My point exactly.

When Kobe & Wade, most recently were playing extremely well and winning titles with Shaq, you had quite a few saying that just about any 2-guard can be put alongside Shaq,and you'd get the same results. Yet, we've seen otherwise.....

As others have said, that's not true. People said you could put the premier shooting guards next to Shaq and the results would likely be the same.

[Flash3]

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As others have said, that's not true. People said you could put the premier shooting guards next to Shaq and the results would likely be the same.

-I should've laid out the caliber of guards I was speaking about, that was my error. -- It would be silly for anyone to think that a Larry Hughes/Deshan Stevenson type SG alongside Shaq and nothing more can amount to anything, really.