Looking at Shaq's injury in the Long Run

Last season, the Cleveland Cavaliers stormed through the regular season. The efforts of LeBron James earned him his first MVP award. Not only was he the MVP, but his team posted the NBA's best record. When the playoffs began, the Cavs swept through the first two rounds before experiencing some trouble with the Orlando Magic. This trouble would prove to be too much for James and the Cavaliers. As a result, the Magic would go on to beat the Cavaliers.

While the Cavaliers were exposed on many levels by the Magic, the one thing that stuck out the most was their lack of a true center to defend Dwight Howard. In the 2009 playoffs, it was Howard, alone, that dominated the Cavs' front court. In the final game of the series, Howard posted 40 points and 14 rebounds. During the offseason, the Cavaliers were determined to find a center to hold Dwight Howard.

After an unsuccessful experiment with Shaquille O'Neal, the Phoenix Suns were willing to deal. In the end, they traded Shaq for a bunch of spare parts from the Cleveland Cavaliers. With Shaq in the mix, Cleveland has had little problems when it comes to beating Orlando, or the Los Angeles Lakers for that matter. Things with Shaq have been going great, but recently he went down with a thumb injury that will keep him out for the rest of the season. Experts say that O'Neal may not return to action until sometime in the second round of the playoffs. Worst case scenario, the Cavaliers lose their grip on the first seed in the Eastern Conference.

If that is the case, Orlando will probably end up posting the top record in the East. With an injured and already old Shaquille O'Neal, Dwight Howard will run all over him. Just O'Neal's defense on Howard has held him down during the season series. But, Dwight Howard will be turned up to another level come playoff time and with his thumb injured, Shaq will not be forcing too much on Howard. That will give him the chance to dominate O'Neal just as if he was Anderson Varejao. Even if Cleveland does hold on to the first seed, they will most likely face Boston or Orlando. With Shaq partially injured, their big men are going to run all over the Cavs.

This late-season injury to Shaquille O'Neal may cost LeBron James the 2010 NBA Championship.