O'Neal will be introduced at a press conference at 10:30 AM today, but already he's saying all the right things.
Shaquille O’Neal OK being a backup - BostonHerald.com
With starting center Kendrick Perkins [stats] expected to be out until at least February as he recovers from knee surgery, O’Neal will have a chance to make an impact. But even with Perkins sidelined, O’Neal could find himself backing up another free agent O’Neal, Jermaine. Though Shaquille O’Neal has started all but nine of his 1,170 career games, he arrives in Boston saying all the right things about filling whatever role coach Doc Rivers prescribes. "I’m at the point of my career where I’m a role player," O’Neal told reporters at a charity basketball game in Orlando, Fla., on Saturday. "I’m going to do whatever they ask me to do. I’m not looking to come up there and dominate the ball and do too much. Whatever they need me to do, I’m going to do."
Personally I think he should embrace it as only Shaq can. He should give the bench a nickname (something more original than the "Bench Mob" please) and then talk each player up with what superpowers they have. He could give the 2nd unit a real identity and leader. And when they inevitably have a hard time scoring, they'll always have the option to toss it into the big guy.