Basketball - Shaq going to the Suns! Should i pick him up for fantasy basketball?

Shaq going to the Suns! Should i pick him up for fantasy basketball?

Before everyone says no, but now i think his value has gone up? he is in my free agency for fantasy basketball should i pick him up? I already have Elton Brand on the bench, i cant have all these injured guys riding pine, but when they get healthy will it be worth it?

Public Comments

you dont want injured players and you are thinking of taking shaq?? lol he hasnt played a full season in about 8 years
the person above me is right, but theres no way he's going to the suns. they'd be crazy to give up shawn marion for the overweigt, injury happy shaq. it might happen, but its a bad move on the suns part
There's absolutely no way Shaq gets traded to the Suns for Marion. I really hope the Suns aren't that stupid to give up a player like Marion for probably 1/2 year of Shaq (he needs to call it quits after this year). They'd be better off working out something with the Bulls, Bobcats or Hornets, you know a team that has some young talent to give back to them.
i also don't think this trade will materialize, so don't pick him up yet. and also, you already have brand. if i am to choose from two injured players to keep, I'll choose brand in a heartbeat.
if shaq does get traded i think you should just keep a really close eye on him. amare will eat up all the minutes but if he goes down, jump on shaq. as for miami, trade like hell for marion or marcus banks theyll get some serious numbers once they get to south beach
Shaq isn't going to the Suns for sure. It's only a trade rumor. Besides, I doubt the Suns would trade away Shawn Marion, who's in his prime, and a young point guard in Marcus Banks for a washed up, old, overpaid center in Shaq. They got a really young center in Amare Stoudamire - he's not old, he's not overpaid, and he's only going to improve in the future. Before the season, Marion did say he wanted to get traded somewhere, but I think that a better offer will have to come into fruition before Marion can get traded. Plus, Marion hadn't talked about wanting to get traded after the season started. If Shaq went to Phoenix his value would go way down because he'd probably have to play alongside Amare, which would cut into each other's scoring and rebounding. Regardless, a washed up Shaq is still a top 10 fantasy center who should be owned in every league. If Shaq is in your free agency then by all means get him unless you have a raw center tandem like Marcus Camby and Stoudamire. What's wrong with having injured guys riding the pine. They're not starting so what difference does it make? The second best strategy in my opinion is to pick up injured players like Gilbert Arenas, Shaq, and Elton Brand because when they come back they will be monsters on the stat line. That would work wonders for your team. It's not the best strategy if you don't have patience or a lot of injuries on your roster because when these guys get back they will be rusty for at least a week or two. The real best strategy is to pick up guys who benefit from having a teammate injured for a long time or traded like Jeff Foster (benefitting from Jermaine O' Neal's absence), Nate Robinson (benefitting from Stephon Marbury's absence), or Darko Millicic ( benefitting from Pau Gasol's absence). Picking up guys like these give you people who will put up numbers almost as good as the people they are replacing with the added bonus of being able to contribute to your fantasy team right away unlike guys who are injured for a long time.
I'm going to ACTUALLY answer your question unlike everyone else here. Yes pick him up, even as bad as he played he still averages 14 pts a game and 7 rebounds a game and he should be coming back soon. I have Elton Brand as well however I'm keeping him on my roster because he is my keeper for next year(keeper league) he shouldnt be back until late Feb or March, if your team is playing strong then keep brand, but if you have someone you can get rid of without dropping Brand for Shaq do that. now i would like to talk about Shaq to PHX, i feel its the right move, Marion is 29 turning 30 so lets not go and say hes a spring chicken like some of you are saying. Other then himself aging a bit, he is a very disgruntled employee right now and thats not a good mix, his points are his 2nd lowest of his career its clear he isnt happy being the 3rd option(stoudamire, nash then marion) not to mention: 1)He will sign with a different team next year = Suns get nothing 2) The Suns get a bigger presence, they arent the run and gun anymore, Diaw and Hill make the game slower but still a fast pace. 3) Shaq when healthy is a great defensive presence the Suns will need in the playoffs, after all last year was their best chance and they didnt make did they? 4)Nash is growing older and that window is getting smaller, they need a change 5)Finally my fav reason for this OVERRATED MARCUS BANKS AND HIS 21 MILLION DOLLAR CONTRACT GETS MOVED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! That should be reason enough to make this trade.