Shaquille O’Neal and the Dallas Mavericks have some little-talked-about history. When the Lakers were looking to offload him in 2004, among the teams that made serious inquiries were the Dallas Mavericks. Unfortunately for them, the Lakers demanded that Dirk Nowitzki be part of the deal too, something that led to the deal falling through. The big man would instead end up on the Miami Heat, later even signing a $100,000,000 contract with them in 2005.
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The fact that the Mavericks were unwilling to give up their best player for him could have prompted Shaq to be petty. Yet, when he was asked about his favorite to win the 2024 NBA championship by NBA2K recently, Dallas was his answer. More shocking still, his response came despite the controversy and criticism team stars Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving have been surrounded by.
Shaquille O’Neal displays faith in Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving
Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving were unable to even make the play-in tournament last season despite all the fanfare they received. While neither player performed poorly in particular, it was clear that the ‘duo’ did not yet know how to play together.
That said, the two have been spending a lot of time together to increase their chemistry. Further, the Dallas Mavericks have made admittedly underrated acquisitions in Grant Williams and Richaun Holmes, which will only boost the team further this season.
Despite all the criticism this team has received for only being good on paper, things do seem to be looking up for the Dallas Mavericks. Still, it must be said that O’Neal may be jumping the gun just a little bit with his prediction for the team. When asked about who he believed would be the 2024 NBA champions, he said the following.
“[2024 NBA] Champions? Dallas Mavericks.”
Despite all the improvements made, there are doubts about Dallas’s ability to make it out of the Western Conference at all. After all, in a conference that has at least five contenders and more that are very close, it will take a lot for the Mavericks to make the NBA Finals.
Is it impossible for the Dallas Mavericks to make the NBA Finals? No. However, saying that they are the favorite to win the NBA championship this season despite having so much to figure out may be equally preposterous.
Shaq has gotten predictions wrong before
Shaquille O’Neal may have an expert understanding of the NBA, however, he is still human. The man has made bold predictions in the past and gotten many of them wrong too. Case in point is his prediction on the 2023 NBA champions, where he passionately announced the Warriors as his pick.
To be fair to Shaq, Golden State was the reigning champ at the time, so he wasn’t the only one to make this prediction. That said, however, could this trend of blown predictions continue with the Dallas Mavericks?
If we’re being honest, it is looking likely.
