Trade Analysis: Shaq Traded To Cleveland Cavaliers

Woah, this is what I wake up to in the morning? The Cleveland Cavs have acquired Shaquille O'Neal for Ben Wallace, Sasha Pavlovic, and the 46th pick in this year's draft. OK, so I give the Cavs a lot of props for actually making this trade. I mean it was an easy decision, since they basically gave up nothing to get Shaq, who just happens to be one of the best players in NBA history. However, I'm still not sure exactly what this means for the Cavs. There's a few things that come to my mind when I analyze this trade.

Shaq's Health: Sure, Shaq was healthy last season, but he's still 37 years old and it's possible he may not be able to withstand a full season of playing time plus a long playoff push. The good news for the Cavs is that they don't have to play Shaq big minutes during the regular season to win games. They still have Zyrundas Ilgauskus and they main re-sign Anderson Varejao, who should both be able to give them enough minutes for those times when they need to rest Shaq during the regular season. Plus, what they gave up for Shaq wasn't a major factor in their ability to win 66 games this past year anyway.

Shaq's Defense: Part of the reason this trade was made was because the Cavs feel like they can't guard Dwight Howard and that Shaq would do a better job on Howard then Ilgauskas or Varejao. Well, I hate to break it to them, but Shaq is 37 years old abd has been getting worse on defense for years now. I don't really see him as a defensive upgrade. Sure, he'll probably do better than Ilgauskus and maybe even Varejao, but I don't think it's that big of an improvement to be honest. I think Shaq's presence will be felt more on the offensive end.

Shaq In The Post: This is where I think Shaq will have his biggest impact on the Cavs. At times, Shaq is going to have to command a double-team in the post and that mean Lebron will be able to cut to the rim for easy baskets and Delonte West and Mo Williams are going to get a ton of open looks....and I do mean a ton. This should make the Cavs offense more diverse and will definitely help them come playoff time. Of course that is assuming that everyone stays healthy and that Mo Williams and Delonte West don't pull a John Starks.

Overall, this is definitely a good trade for the Cavs simply because they are not giving up anything of significance and they are getting a solid low post presence on offense in Shaq. That is something they have not had since Lebron has been on the Cavs and it should help their offense tremendously. Defensively, I think things are pretty much a wash, but the Cavs now have a great second option on offense to Lebron, and that in turn makes Mo Williams a 3rd option(at least during playoff time). This definitely makes the Cavs one of the favorites to win the NBA Finals, however, they will still have to get through the Celtics, who if fully healthy should be just as good as the Cavs and also possibly the Magic if they can find a way to keep Hedo Turkoglu from leaving. In other words, the East is becoming a dog fight that should give us some classic playoff battles next season.

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