Jeremy: Miami Mortgages the Farm

Okay, forget the Brian Grant part of the equation. He had about 2 good seasons over his career, he's getting up in age, and beside all that, if anyone could ever get to him and cut that hair, he'd be all but washed up.
Caron Butler and Lamar Odom for Shaq. That's the (proposed) deal. If the Lakers are looking to rebuild, it's a great deal for them, especially if Ego, I mean Kobe, sticks around. If the Heat are looking to win now, it's good for them too... at least on the surface. It automatically makes the East look tougher and it makes the West look much more wide open. Dare I say that it's a good thing for everyone involved?
Off the record Jeff has said that if he was Miami, he wouldn't do it. And I have to agree that the only part of the deal that seems a little suspect to me is not so much what Miami is getting (because who wouldn't want Shaq?) but what they are giving up. The thing that took Miami further than anyone gave them a shot to go last year was how they came together as a young team who just loved playing together and wanted to win together. Butler and Odom were a huge part of that, but now it's gone. So does adding Shaq make up for the loss of chemistry of a bunch of young guys? I don't know, why don't we ask last year's Lakers? True, they didn't win the championship, but they got there, and there was not a drip of chemistry on that team. The team with the best player in the league is always going to win the championship or be right there at the end. Go ahead, look at the last 20 years of NBA basketball. Lakers, Celtics, Pistons, Bulls, Rockets, Spurs and the Lakers again. Magic (or Kareem), Bird, Isiah, MJ, the Dream, Duncan & Shaq. In fact, I would contend the only team to win an NBA title in the last 20 years that didn't have the best player in the league on their team? The 03-04 Pistons, and the reason they did it was because their defense was so unbelievably dominating that it was better than any one player.
My point is this, as long as Shaq is in the league and mildly healthy, he is the best player in the league. Yes, the Pistons proved that unreal defense could shut him down, but only one team in the league can play that kind of defense right now, and even they played over their heads in the finals.
I do think that Miami can be questioned for making this deal, but you best believe that they would be questioned more if they didn't.