O'Neal: "Not Really Enjoying It"
Jermaine O'Neal can't get up like he used to. The Indiana Pacers' 6-foot-11 all-star forward would elevate so high and lift his right arm even higher to release his jumper, making it virtually impossible for an opponent to reject it. But on more than one occasion this season, O'Neal has had that jumper stuffed right back in his face.
"You never really [saw] that," O'Neal said after the Pacers lost 103-90 to the Washington Wizards on Wednesday night.
But it happened again in the fourth quarter last night, when Wizards center Brendan Haywood swatted O'Neal's 15-foot shot. O'Neal grabbed the rebound then leaned to the left to shoot a fadeaway that barely grazed the rim. It's been an all-too-familiar image for O'Neal this season: Either a Marcus Camby, Rajon Rondo, Kendrick Perkins or Haywood is blocking his shot or he is simply off target.
O'Neal needed 19 shots to get 17 points last night. He played a season-high 39 minutes and the Pacers (3-5) lost their fifth game in a row. The third-leading scorer on the Pacers - behind Danny Granger and Mike Dunleavy?!? - at 13.7 points per game, O'Neal is shooting a career-low 38.3 percent from the floor. His primary problem is an over-reliance on that jump shot. He isn't backing down his opponents in the low block as much, or giving those shakes and shimmies to get them off-balanced.
O'Neal obviously isn't right.
As he munched on a plate of chicken fingers and French fries after the game, O'Neal had an ice pack on his surgically repaired left knee (he had offseason surgery to repair a torn meniscus last summer, just like Gilbert Arenas). But from the sullen look that appears surgically placed upon his face, he seems to be weighed down by more than just a bum knee.
"I'm not really enjoying it right now," O'Neal said. "For one, we're losing."
Will you trade for me? (AP Photo/Haraz N. Ghanbari)
O'Neal is having a difficult adjustment to a team that is abandoning the plodding (Arenas used the term, "robotic") style in which he thrived under Rick Carlisle to a new, uptempo approach under new Coach Jim O'Brien. The personnel around O'Neal have changed dramatically, too, over the past few seasons, leaving him to ponder his future with the organization.
He had the most baffling trade me/don't trade me demand this side of Kobe Bryant last summer and the Pacers made no secrets that they were attempting to move O'Neal. They called about 25 teams to gauge interest in O'Neal before realizing that the league-wide opinion of the only Pacer to be named to six all-star teams had diminished considerably.
It was just three years ago that O'Neal was in discussion for the league's most valuable player award, finishing third in voting in 2004, after he averaged 20.1 points, 10 rebounds and 2.5 blocks to lead the Pacers to 61 wins and the Eastern Conference Finals. But O'Neal has missed 82 games because of injuries and suspensions the past three seasons. His reputation for being brittle, combined with his salary - O'Neal makes $19.7 million this season and is owed more than $44 million the next two - has made him difficult to move.
Pacers President of Basketball Operations Larry Bird has taken O'Neal off the block while the team attempts to see how he fits into O'Brien's new system, but the cloud still lingers.
"I don't worry about that," O'Neal said of the trade speculation. "It doesn't bother me because I understand the nature of the business. When things go bad, the best player is going to get his name thrown in there.
"I mean, you got a situation with Kobe Bryant, who is the league's best player. How do you trade him? If they trade a guy like Shaq, everybody is tradable," O'Neal said. "You can't sit down and worry about what a team is thinking. I told [Pacers CEO Donnie Walsh] and those guys this summer . . . 'If y'all choose to move me to another situation, I appreciate what you've done for me. You've given me the opportunity to establish myself. I stand behind their decision.' If I'm traded, I'm traded. That means there is another team that wants me."
O'Neal, Jeff Foster and Jamaal Tinsley are the only players remaining from that conference final team. And Bird said in a conversation last month that the team still hasn't recovered from the infamous brawl in November 2004. "Just to fight back from that was tough on all of us," Bird said. "We had a team that could compete for a championship, but some players wanted to be traded, some players couldn't play together, and we made a lot of changes. But we're trying to build it back up to an elite. It might take some time, but we feel like we're in that direction."
Since the brawl, Bird and Walsh have traded Ron Artest for Peja Stojakovic, traded for Al Harrington and packaged him with Stephen Jackson to bring in Mike Dunleavy, Troy Murphy and Ike Diogu. The team is moving in a different direction and it's up to O'Neal to catch up - if he can. "It feels like we did start over," O'Neal said, "but it doesn't feel like we're at that expansion level. I'm willing to grow with those guys. If the team feels like it needs to move me if things aren't going well, that's what it is."
This summer, the Pacers replaced Carlisle with O'Brien, who has given his team permission to get out on the run. After missing the last four preseason games and the season opener with a hyperextended left knee, O'Neal said he has been forced to "figure things out on the fly." O'Brien has been bringing along slowly O'Neal, playing him shortened minutes, and said he wasn't worried about his star's reduced production. "Jermaine's numbers aren't where they are going to be midseason," O'Brien said.
O'Neal said he is confident that he won't continue to struggle. "I'm getting there," O'Neal said. "My game is not where I want it to be. My rhythm isn't any where near where I want it to be. My knee isn't where I want it to be. But I feel better every time I step on the court. I don't have any major concerns that I won't be back to the level I want to be.
"Do I feel down about where I'm at? No," he said. "I feel like it's early in the season."
By Michael Lee |
November 15, 2007; 7:30 AM ET
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Posted by: Firuz | November 15, 2007 7:48 AM
Why would Ernie trade for a player that's having trouble adjusting to the new speed of the Pacers when the Wizards play at a much higher speed?
Posted by: Bart | November 15, 2007 8:13 AM
Rajon Rondo blocked his shot? For real? Dudes at like a 9-inch height disadvantage.
Oh, and chicken fingers and fries aren't going to help the vertical any.
Posted by: Jamie Mottram | November 15, 2007 8:13 AM
Firuz - AJ for O'Neal?
Jamison's contract expires at the end of this year. If they trade him for O'Neil, where does the money come from to re-sign Arenas next year?
Are you saying that you would be willing to trade Antawn Jamison, AND watch Gilbert Arenas walk - - - for Jermaine O'Neal?
Posted by: Rook | November 15, 2007 9:29 AM
And let's be real, you know Indy is not making that trade without Blatche being part of the mix.
And if AB keeps showing improvement like he did last night, he will be untouchable.
J.O. has had knee problems, among a slew of other injuries, every year. We already have injury issues...we sure don't need that imminent threat around the corner.
And I agree with a previous poster...chicken fingers and fries? C'mon you're supposed to be a vet, take care of your body son!
Then again, if the Pacers were to take...say..Antawn and Pesh for J.O., I might think about it.
But knowing Abe Pollin, and the fact that Gil is opting out, the two years left on O'Neal's contract might strap the Wizards, thus not making business sense.
Verdict: No to JO.
Posted by: truthaboutit.net | November 15, 2007 9:30 AM
"O'Neal obviously isn't right.
As he munched on a plate of chicken fingers and French fries after the game, O'Neal had an ice pack on his surgically repaired left knee (he had offseason surgery to repair a torn meniscus last summer, just like Gilbert Arenas). But from the sullen look that appears surgically placed upon his face, he seems to be weighed down by more than just a bum knee."
Duh, maybe he shouldn't be munching on chicken fingers and fries, and thus could elevate better.
Posted by: DC Man88 | November 15, 2007 10:01 AM
Send this guy some veggies and hummous.
Posted by: khrabb | November 15, 2007 10:16 AM
Michael, re. menu after game, doesn't the host team take care of that? So what's the after-game spread look like?
Posted by: rgz | November 15, 2007 10:48 AM
truthaboutit - Yeah, but it's not JUST about making business sense.
If a deal goes through, say Jamison and Pech for O'Neal -
1. The Indiana Pacers now have Jamison's expiring contract, and are out from under O'Neal's contract - putting them square up front to bid on Arenas.
2. The Wiz, now strapped with O'Neal's Max deal, are no longer in a position to offer a max-deal to Arenas.
3. Jamison - having been traded, seeing the state of the "new" team, having no loyalty to the Wizards, and knowing the Wizards can't even offer him close to what they were paying him this year ($16M), goes to Charlotte (or another team that can afford him).
4. Blatche, labors behind O'Neal on the bench for two more years.
That trade makes no sense from a TALENT standpoint, as well as a business standpoint.
Posted by: Rook | November 15, 2007 10:55 AM
Even when he was right, O'Neal wasn't really as good as his reps or his stats. He was a guy who'd put up big numbers but wasn't really a tough power player or a crunch time player who could carry a team, which would bee fine and still make him a valuable asset for any team, if he weren't for the fact that he's making almost $20 mill/yr.
Posted by: kalorama | November 15, 2007 10:57 AM
If we even express an interest in attempting to trade for him, I'm starting a 'Fire EG' campaign. Our team is good as is.
If we stay healthy and mix in the subs, we have a legit chance to get to the Finals. I think this team beats last year's Cleveland team. I think we'd even have a shot at kissing the cup.
Posted by: mark | November 15, 2007 12:23 PM
"Kissing the cup"? Put that Kool-aid down, man...
Posted by: Prazak | November 15, 2007 12:30 PM
Kissing whose cup?
Posted by: Anonymous | November 15, 2007 5:41 PM
Rook,
You can go over the cap to re-sign your own players.
Posted by: Anonymous | November 15, 2007 9:22 PM
Chickens don't have fingers, JO. That's your problem right there.
Posted by: John Brisker | November 15, 2007 9:50 PM
Jermaine has long been cataclysmically overrated on the offensive end. He has been a remarkably inefficient offensive player throughout his career. This year, he's even worse.
On defense, he's been terrific throughout his career. But the guy's high scoring average the past few seasons has been primarily a function of him taking lots of shots. His shooting percentages have been subpar throughout his career.
Posted by: TSW | November 20, 2007 11:33 AM
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O'Neal for AJ. EG make it happen!!!!!!