When it comes to making NBA predictions (or most others, for that matter), Shaq is certainly a guy who likes to express himself in a really big way. Not surprising, right? Anyway, even though the NBA Playoffs are still months away (set your calendar for June 2nd), O’Neal is already laying down some big thoughts and predictions, especially over a couple of strong teams out west.
So far this season, no team has really stood out from the pack in the NBA. Sure, there are the good teams and the not-so-good, but it’s a long way to playoff time, and anything can happen. Teams can gel and stars can emerge.
Still, that’s not stopping Shaq from getting out in front of the crowd and talking about his favorites for post-season play. For O’Neal, his team of the moment is the Golden State Warriors. The Warriors snapped a two-game losing streak against the Chicago Bulls on Friday night (as of this writing), demolishing DeMar DeRozan and company at United Center.
Analysts say Golden State is starting to look like the dangerous team they were at the start of the season, reminding people that they are ready to return to the top of the league. Plenty of people around the league believe they have a solid case to win the title, and Shaq is absolutely one of those.
On a recent edition of his podcast (“The Big Podcast with Shaquille O’Neal”), the former Lakers legend was all about the team up the California coast. In fact, he was so confident in his prediction of success for the Warriors, he created a rather interesting challenge for himself. It involves those Warriors, and western division rival the Phoenix Suns.
As we’ve said, the playoffs are a long ways away, but Shaq is already setting up a playoff matchup, and his predicted results. From the podcast: “If the Suns beat Golden State I am going to walk two blocks with Suns written on my ass, I’ll post it live on Instagram with it,” he said. Yikes!
Too much? Maybe. But it certainly shows how much love O’Neal has for Steph Curry and his Warrior teammates. There’s no doubt that Golden State is is in good shape right now – Klay Thompson is back and only getting stronger, and the expectations are high and getting higher for the Dubs.
As for the Suns, expectations are also pretty high. Losing to the Milwaukee Bucks in the Finals last year gave the team a taste of getting to the top of the game. The only place to go from here is to win the Championship… anything less would probably rank as a failure for the team from the Valley of the Sun.
Will the Warriors meet up against the Suns in the postseason again? We’ll have to wait and see. And as for that big promise by Shaq, well… let’s just wait and “see,” shall we?