The Big Man Cometh: Shaqtus Comes to Cleveland

A deal that has been on the table for months between the Cleveland Cavaliers and Phoenix Suns is reportedly completed. ESPN has confirmed that Cleveland and Phoenix have agreed to send C Shaquille O'Neal to Cleveland in exchange for a package including C/F Ben Wallace, F Sasha Pavlovic, and the 46th pick in the 2009 NBA Draft. This means that Shaq will now join forces with his third superstar wing player of the decade in F LeBron James, who is pretty good in his own right. O'Neal's contract expires at the end of the season and has value of over $20 million, freeing up space for the 2010 free agent spending spree. This deal has been rumored to be going down since the February trading deadline, when Cleveland was hesitant to deal Wallace before the playoff run. Instead, they chose to trade him in this offseason, where his $15 million expiring deal carries its most value. Many have questioned Shaq's conditioning, but in Cleveland's half-court offense that shouldn't be much of a problem.  ... (link)