Shaq to Dallas: How Close Was It?

The Diesel · Post #1 » by **The Diesel** » Sun Jul 13, 2008 8:46 am

Hey guys,

As a Shaq fan, I was wondering whether you guys had any information as to whether how close Shaq was traded to Dallas when he demanded to leave Miami.

It's no secret he's always wanted to play for Dallas, but did Dallas even make an offer for him before Phoenix got him?

I think Shaq and Dirk would have complimented each other really well on the court.

And do you guys think Shaq would have fit in well with the team compared to Kidd?

Personally, I think you guys will be really good next year. Dirk is an awesome player, Kidd is a future Hall of Famer, Howard is really good, and Carlisle is one of the best coaches in the NBA.

Plus, you have two good Centers in Dampier and Diop.

I think the Kidd trade will work out...it's not like Devin Harris is THAT great of a player.

dirkforpres · Post #2 » by **dirkforpres** » Sun Jul 13, 2008 8:51 am

I am glad Shaq didnt come to Dallas, not that I think a deal was even discussed in the first place. Dallas couldnt have come up with a better offer for him than what Phoenix ended up trading for him. No disrespect to Shaq, but if we were looking to trade for a veteran, im glad it was for Kidd rather than Shaq. Thanks for your support for the team and I hope you are right... If only I had your optimism.

JapanAir21 · Post #3 » by **JapanAir21** » Sun Jul 13, 2008 8:54 am

Thanks for the kind words man, way to present yourself, unlike a lot of jerks that come to this neck of the woods. You're a lot more optimistic than about half of the people on this board.

Dallas was always sourced to Shaq, but personally I never saw any news that it was close to being done. I personally would've liked to see Shaq+Devin+Dirk if we could have, but hey, that's just not how things went down. I really never saw anything close enough that would lead one on to suspect that we were going to get him.

The Diesel · Post #4 » by **The Diesel** » Sun Jul 13, 2008 8:55 am

The Kidd trade isn't as bad as the media is making it out to be; yes, Paul outplayed him in the playoffs, but Paul is (in my opinion) the best PG in the NBA.

Kidd is still a much better player than Shaq is and I wouldn't want to face a line-up that has Kidd, Howard, and Dirk in the starting line-up and a great coach like Carlisle.

Plus, I think Gerald Green was a good pick-up and Kidd will make him look really good because both are really good on the fast-break.

I think you guys will be much better than people think next year.

JD45 · Post #5 » by **JD45** » Sun Jul 13, 2008 12:44 pm

According to Cuban:

First they told Miami that if they bought out Shaq, the Mavs would sign him to a full MLE deal. Of course Shaq would know this, so he would be likely to accept an offsetting buyout amount from Miami. Miami refused.

Next, they offered a deal with Dampier as the center piece. Miami refused.

Finally, they offered a deal with Terry as the center piece. Miami made a trade with Phoenix.

I think if Phoenix had not stepped in, Shaq would have wound up in Dallas. And maybe Avery would have been retained. Shaq would have fit well with Avery's style.

The Diesel · Post #6 » by **The Diesel** » Sun Jul 13, 2008 2:17 pm

^, Thanks for the info!

Miami definitely got a much better deal from Phoenix as Marion is much better than Terry and Dampier.

But I think Shaq would have fit in better with Dallas than he has in Phoenix, so far.

Do you guys agree that him and Dirk would have made a good 1-2 punch?

I know things didn't work out for Dallas and Phoenix last year, but Dallas is in better shape because they didn't give up a player like Marion and Kidd isn't as washed up as Shaq.

Phoenix made a dumb trade; but I can see why Dallas made the trade for Kidd.

So, would Shaq have been a good fit in Dallas if he was traded there?

Interesting to know that Dallas made offers for him...I didn't know that.

from_ro_to_dirk · Post #7 » by **from_ro_to_dirk** » Sun Jul 13, 2008 6:20 pm

i'd heard speculation on the Ticket and i thought on dallas morning news that the Heat wanted Howard. The Mavs obviously balked at that.

JES12 · Post #8 » by **JES12** » Mon Jul 14, 2008 2:23 am

from_ro_to_dirk wrote:i'd heard speculation on the Ticket and i thought on dallas morning news that the Heat wanted Howard. The Mavs obviously balked at that.

That is the same talk on the radio when it happened.

Miami fans wanted Howard (of course we balked at that) and Dallas fans did not want to pay $30+ mil (not counting tax) for a 32 and 36 yo center rotation.

I personally would have Dampier + Stack for Shaq, but nothing else like picks & the sort.

JD45 · Post #9 » by **JD45** » Mon Jul 14, 2008 2:42 am

The Diesel wrote:^,

Phoenix made a dumb trade; but I can see why Dallas made the trade for Kidd.

Phoenix made a very stupid trade. Although the Kidd trade wasn't very good either. In January, the Suns and Mavs had the two best records in the West. Then they decided to make some trades. I don't think very many people consider either team to be contenders any more.

jwa1107 · Post #10 » by **jwa1107** » Mon Jul 14, 2008 7:13 pm

I was about to ask "which time" on Shaq to DAL because I'd bet it was closer with MIA than ever with LAL although the talk of the town was whether or not to give up Dirk for Shaq and team him up with Nash and Finley. Most fans wanted to just unload Finley on LAL...

from_ro_to_dirk · Post #11 » by **from_ro_to_dirk** » Mon Jul 14, 2008 8:25 pm

jwa1107 wrote:I was about to ask "which time" on Shaq to DAL because I'd bet it was closer with MIA than ever with LAL although the talk of the town was whether or not to give up Dirk for Shaq and team him up with Nash and Finley. Most fans wanted to just unload Finley on LAL...

It turns out we should have traded Nash to the Lakers for Shaq and still made the pickups of Harris/Stack and Terry and not have had to bother with Dampier. Actually I think in that scenerio Nash and Damp would have gone to LA in a 3-way. I believe that was some of the discussion back then, how to get Damp to LA in a Shaq trade (if Lakers were even interested in him).

If we did all that, I'm sure we'd have won at least the one finals we blew (obviously) and could be fighting the Spurs for the Team of the Decade honors.

The Diesel · Post #12 » by **The Diesel** » Tue Jul 15, 2008 4:19 am

I was about to ask "which time" on Shaq to DAL because I'd bet it was closer with MIA than ever with LAL although the talk of the town was whether or not to give up Dirk for Shaq and team him up with Nash and Finley. Most fans wanted to just unload Finley on LAL...

Yeah, I meant from Miami to Dallas. I don't think things ever got close between LAL and Dallas when Shaq was in LA because Cuban didn't want to give up Dirk.

Which was a good move on Cuban's part because Dirk is still in the prime of his career while Shaq is washed up and pretty much ruined the Phoenix Suns.