An open letter to Cavalier fans

Dear Cavs Fans,

With the introduction of Shaquille O’Neal as a member of the Cavaliers today, we here in Phoenix thought it would be an appropriate time to have a little talk. We understand what you are going through today. We went through it on February 7, 2008. You feel excited, enthralled with every word Shaq“>Shaq has to say and dreams of championships are dancing in your head. It’s like Christmas, minus the fat guy in the red suit (that was a different introduction when Denny Green came to town). You’ve come so close over the last four years but were always missing one piece. With the introduction of the Big Aristotle you feel you have found that missing part. That one thing that will help win a title and keep King James in a Cleveland uniform for the long run. We felt it all here in Phoenix just a short year and a half ago and boy that championship parade felt even better.

During the press conference today, Shaq said all the right things. He talked about fitting in, being able to play any style of basketball and knowing his roll. All things that sound oddly familiar to the tune the Big Shaqtus sang when he arrived in the Valley. Too bad it was all talk.

Don’t believe us? Today he stated his motto for this season is “win a ring for the King”. In 2008 he said he was going to take Amare Stoudemire to the next level and called his motto for 2008/2009 the “Amare Stoudemire Project” (the Allan Parsons’ Project proved to be more successful over the last two years).

“This is something I couldn’t turn down. You guys already are a damn good team,” O’Neal told the Cleveland media today. When Shaq was introduced in Phoenix, he fed the fans and media a similar line saying, “I just want to come in and fit in with a damn good team”. Shaq’s ego proved too big to fit in with the Suns, but now the team doesn’t have to worry about that or about having a “damn good team”.

Not enough to prove that Shaq knows the company lines? How about this? Today he told reporters “I’m not here to demand 40 or 50 shots. Thirty (laughing). I’m just coming in to do my part.” Funny because during his introduction in Phoenix he said almost the identical thing, “I’m not a ball freak I’m not going to be asking for 30 or 40 touches. I just want to fit in”. We all saw how that worked out for the Suns. By the 2008-2009 season Shaq was demanding more touches than a frat boy at a strip club and instead of advancing the Suns fans’ dream of a title, he and his personality helped to dash them.

Don’t get us wrong Cleveland, stay optimistic as long as you can. Try not to lose faith until it becomes abundantly clear that you have to. Just remember, when Shaq came to the desert, the Suns were a first place team in the west, they were a title contender for four years running and they just couldn’t get over the proverbial hump to win it all (sound familiar?). One hundred and three games, thousands of tweets and one playoff win later the Suns are no longer a contender and are on the verge of losing one or two of their stars, Amare Stoudemire and Steve Nash, (if you’re not careful it will sound familiar sooner than you think). Buyer beware, because once you buy into the hype that is Shaq the process begins and, at least in Phoenix, it ends with the fans still urning for a ring and with the feeling of a “Big Disappointment”.

All the Best,

Sports fans of Phoenix

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