Jermaine O’Neal: 2010 All-Star?

When he was first shipped to the Miami Heat, Jermaine O’Neal was looked at by most basketball critics as damaged goods. In many critics’ opinion, the Miami Heat, itself, was damaged goods.

During his first season with the Heat, Jermaine O’Neal saw his impact and stats continue to slip. While he was with the Indiana Pacers, O’Neal became one of the top players in the league, but injuries decimated him into a has-been.

Coming into the 2009-2010 NBA season, Jermaine O’Neal has a major chip on his shoulder. It has been three years since anyone has mentioned him for any special type of award, or even as an All-Star. For a man once dubbed a future Hall of Famer, that has to hurt.

After spending the entire of summer of 2009 working out with Tim Grover, O’Neal says that he is free of pain for the first time since 2007. In the Heat’s first two games, one would guess that the year was 2004. Currently, Jermaine is averaging 22 points and 12 rebounds.

With Dwyane Wade, he has led the Miami Heat to its first 2-0 start in five years and he led the team to its first win in Indiana since 2001. For many years, O’Neal played with the Pacers, who have owned Miami for a very long time. Now that he is with the Heat, O’Neal has vowed to end that streak to reverse it.

Some are doubting Jermaine O’Neal’s stellar play, questioning if he can maintain this for an entire season. There are plenty of doubters that say that his play and the play of the rest of the team will dwindle, leaving most of the burden to Wade for yet another season. O’Neal brushes those critics to the side, as he feels that the Heat are title contenders this year and that he should be an All-Star.

Led by Jermaine O’Neal, the Miami Heat are definitely one of the best teams in the league. However, only time will tell how long that they can maintain this great start.