When Shaquille O'Neal was recently asked how much the Miami Heat have missed his presence during his 18-game absence with an ankle injury, he responded:
"It's sort of like in the movie The Karate Kid when Daniel said he needed Mr. Miyagi and Mr. Miyagi game him that confidence to believe he really didn't. These guys think they really need me right now, but they don't."
Ahhh ... but Shaq-san, they do need you.
On Sunday night, with O'Neal back in the lineup, the Miami Heat ended a four-game losing with a 104-101 overtime victory over the Washington Wizards.
With the Heat down by one point and time running out, guess who came to the rescue?
Shaq.
He was sent to the free-throw line with one second left where he made one-of-two to push the game into the extra frame.
He only contributed 10 points and 11 rebounds in 23 minutes off the bench, but regardless of his modest production, it's clear that the Heat are not the same team without their sensei.
It's like when Mr. Miyagi told Daniel about karate training for the first time:
"You karate do 'yes,' or karate do 'no.' You karate do 'guess so,'..." and then he squishes the grape.
The same analogy applies for the Heat. With Shaq, they are a championship-caliber team. Without him, they are a low seed in the Eastern Conference playoff picture. There is no in between.
O'Neal's presence makes a world of difference, just like it did when he arrived from Los Angeles last season. Not only is he a legitimate scoring option at every point of the game, he creates more space for his teammates to work with since he is such a threat in the post.
More attention for Shaq means more space for Dwyane Wade, more open looks for Gary Payton and James Posey, and more freedom for Udonis Haslem and Antoine Walker to rebound.
Without O'Neal, the Heat were really starting to struggle. Wade was pressing too much and outside of him, the Heat were lacking scoring options. Payton has become a spot-up shooter while the production from Posey and Walker has been inconsistent.
In their last home game versus Denver, the Nuggets double-teamed Wade down the stretch and the Heat had no scoring answers.
But with Shaq-fu on the court, Wade doesn't get double-teamed.
If you need more evidence, just take a glance at the Los Angeles Lakers, who have dropped from the ranks faster than John Kreese and the Cobras since they traded the big man to South Beach.
The Lakers thought that their championships were built around Kobe Bryant, but now they know for sure. It's the same in Miami. O'Neal is more the key to their success than Wade.
That's why the Heat really do need Shaq, even if Daniel-san didn't really need Mr. Miyagi.
The Karate Kid and the Miami Heat mix like Mondays and me.
"Wax on, wax off." — Mr. Miyagi
December 12, 2005
Doing Lines:
Hey - I like your thoughts, but I like Mondays. Especially the changes at the top, with Riley throwing van-the-man out. What do you think happened here? Did Riles actually force him out, or no?