Will Cavs Regret Not Trading for Shaq?

Around this season's trade deadline, there was a lot of chatter surrounding Shaquille O'Neal. Everyone assumed that Shaq or his teammate Amare Stoudemire wouldn't be in a Suns uniform past the trade deadline. Of course the deadline passed and both Shaq and Amare remained on Planet Orange.

One of the teams reported to be involved in the pursuit of O'Neal was none other than the Cleveland Cavaliers. According to reports, the deal fell through because the Cavaliers wanted the Suns to take back Ben Wallace in return for Shaq, while the Suns wanted Wally Szczerbiak. The disagreements were purely financial, as Szczerbiak's deal expires at the end of this season, while Wallace has an additional year.

Hindsight is always 20/20, but did the Cavs make a mistake in not trading for Shaq?

Shaq had another All-Star season and was easily the third best center in the league behind Dwight Howard and Yao Ming. Combining him with the out-of-this-world LeBron probably would have given Cleveland the ammunition to defeat the Orlando Magic.

Shaq can pretty much defend every center in the league one-on-one. That ability would have allowed the Cavaliers the opportunity to stay out on Orlando's deadly three-point shooters. Shaq also could have punished Dwight Howard down on the block and at least forced him to work on that end.

In addition, Shaq would have been ultra-motivated playing next to LeBron James, as it would have given him a legitimate chance to secure his fifth championship ring and the chance to gain credit for leading LeBron James to his first championship -- in other words, "I'm the reason Kobe, D-Wade, and LeBron have rings." Lastly, the trade would have given Shaq a chance to ruin the seasons of Kobe Bryant, Dwight Howard and Stan Van Gundy.

As mentioned above, reports claimed Cleveland didn't go through with the deal based on financial worries. The ironic thing is that not making that deal might cause the Cavaliers organization to suffer far worse financial implications. As Darren Rovell reported earlier this week, it is estimated that the Cavaliers franchise will lose at least $100 million from its franchise value if LeBron James leaves the team in 2010.

There's no doubt in my mind that with Shaq on the roster, the Cavs would have at least made the Finals. A loss in the Finals to the Lakers probably would have been a bit easier for LeBron to swallow than this loss to the Magic. If trading for Shaq would have made LeBron more likely to stay with the Cavs long-term, it probably would have been worth the risk.