Heat wants Shaq to make extended stay.
Team president Pat Riley said he hopes Shaquille O'Neal will do what is necessary to stay in Miami `for the next four or five years.'
There was a sense of missed opportunity from the moment the Heat lost Game 7 of the Eastern Conference finals against the Detroit Pistons.
Shaquille O'Neal, 33, will be around for only so long, and the championship window can stay open for only so many years.
On Friday, though, Heat president Pat Riley said he'd like that window to stay ajar as long as possible by keeping O'Neal in Miami for the next ``four or five years.''
O'Neal has a clause in his contract that allows him to waive the $30.6 million due to him next season and become an unrestricted free agent. By the rules of the collective bargaining agreement, if O'Neal chooses to opt out of his contract, the Heat can re-sign him for as many as five years (if O'Neal doesn't opt out, the Heat can only extend his contract through 2008).
And Riley said the Heat and O'Neal have agreed that keeping the center around as long as possible is in everyone's best interest.
''We have agreed to agree to agree to move forward,'' Riley said in a telephone interview. ``It would be absolute insanity not to try to work out, when we're able to, obviously, after July 1, a deal that keeps Shaquille O'Neal in Miami for the next four or five years. That's always been our intention. We would have never made the trade unless we felt very strongly about him wanting to be here.''
What might happen.
However, there are a few factors still to be worked out. The realistic possibility of a lockout could affect, or at least delay, O'Neal's decision to opt out. And although Riley said he would like O'Neal to remain the highest-paid player in the league, the Heat also is looking to avoid paying a hefty luxury tax should its payroll get too high.
So Riley implied Friday that O'Neal might have to give up $1 million or $2 million so the Heat can afford quality players around O'Neal.
''I know [O'Neal's camp is] sensitive to that fact there are certain financial restraints we have, that in order to get the players around him that he wants, we've got to make a deal that's going to be good for both sides,'' Riley said.
Kareem Comparison.
However, that doesn't affect Riley's desire to keep O'Neal around for as long as possible. Having coached and won championships with a mature Lakers center in Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Riley believes O'Neal can be extremely valuable for at least another half-decade.
''From the time Kareem was 32 to the time he was 42, the team won five championships, and they were in the Finals [eight] years in that time,'' Riley said.
``So there's no doubt that I feel that Shaquille, if he chooses to, and this is up to him -- can play four or five more years.''
Riley emphasized that O'Neal's health and fitness will be key to his longevity, so Riley kept alive the possibility that a weight clause, like the one built into Tim Hardaway's final contract with the Heat, could be figured into a new contract.
'There are always incentive clauses in players' contracts and stuff like that,'' Riley said.
``But I would hope that Shaquille, like most players, gets to a point where they don't have to do that, where they know what their job is, and they get highly motivated and they keep themselves in shape during the offseason. I think he's starting to move down that road.''
Other Team Issues.
O'Neal isn't the only issue Riley has to tackle this offseason. Power forward Udonis Haslem is a restricted free agent who could be lured away. The Heat can sign Haslem to a contract starting at the average NBA salary (approximately $5.5 million). But if a team with salary-cap space offers Haslem anything more than that, the Heat won't be able to match it.
The Cavaliers and Hawks are expected to pursue Haslem, and they both have ample salary-cap space.
''The market will tell us what he's going to do, once free agency starts and the bidding starts,'' Riley said. ``We love Udonis. He's a great player, he's got a great character, he's a very intelligent basketball player, he's got super hands. He's a little bit undersized, but I don't buy that. He did a great job for us the last two years, and he should be rewarded.''
Damon Jones, who started all but 16 games at point guard this season, also has an option in his contract that would make him a free agent. Should he opt out, the Heat would have to cut into its mid-level exception to re-sign him.
It starts with Shaq.
Riley said he hasn't addressed that subject yet, and the O'Neal domino must fall before he truly can tackle the point-guard situation.
''We're not going to do anything with anybody until we find out where we are with Shaquille, as far as getting that deal done,'' Riley said.
Riley also addressed Alonzo Mourning's situation, saying the unrestricted free-agent center is ''just going to wait awhile'' before he makes a decision on returning. The Heat picked up the option on Mourning's contract for next season, meaning only that if Mourning decides to play, he'll already be under contract with Miami. The Heat also wasted no time in picking up the option on Dwyane Wade's fourth season, which keeps him under contract through 2007 and makes him a restricted free agent after that.
Riley practically guaranteed a few changes to next season's team, but he also said, if healthy, this year's team could have won a title. So finding the balance between continuity and change will be a big challenge.
''I do think you need to add, every year, one or two different parts until you get exactly what it is you want,'' Riley said.
Source: Miami Herald. (Registration requiered.)
4-5 Years? That's quite a few years, Shaq's not getting any younger or better, I'd say three max would be lucky. I just hope he isn't Olajuwon type when he leaves basketball. As rude as that sounds.
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