The Miami HEAT announced today that they have acquired 11-time All-Star center Shaquille O�Neal from the Los Angeles Lakers in exchange for Caron Butler, Brian Grant, Lamar Odom and a future first-round draft pick. �Today the Miami HEAT took a giant step forward in our continued pursuit of an NBA championship for the city of Miami and this franchise,� said HEAT President Pat Riley.

Sources say the Heat may have also increased the value of the team as well. Adding Shaq to the roster has boosted the teams value $40+ million higher.

In other news:

Steve Nash may not be the only talented player the Suns land this summer. The club also agreed to a deal with restricted free agent swingman Quentin Richardson. An offer sheet has been signed and the Clippers, his current team, now have 14 days to match the offer and retain the four-year NBA veteran�s services, or decline and allow him to make his way to the Valley.

As the pool of available big men in free agency continues to shrink, the Heat was left Thursday to mull the possibilities of something truly gargantuan.

“It’s not a news bulletin that Shaq’s on the market,” Heat President Pat Riley said. “And we, like everybody else, are listening.”

Apparently, the Heat is listening intently, joined by the Indiana Pacers and Dallas Mavericks as teams making the biggest pushes for Shaquille O’Neal.

With the Lakers’ center demanding a trade, the Heat apparently has pushed virtually all its chips to the center of the table — with the exception of guard Dwyane Wade, seemingly its lone untouchable.

Although he attempted to downplay such trade talks, Riley, making his first appearance at the Pepsi Pro Summer League, did not discount the possibility.

In fact, amid an already wild offseason that has seen guards Tracy McGrady and Steve Francis trade places in Orlando and Houston, respectively, and Vince Carter push for a trade from Toronto, Riley said no prospect should be disregarded.

“I mean, Tracy McGrady got traded. He was on the market,” Riley said. “I’ve heard three or four other great-name players that are on the market, Shaq being one of ’em.

“You’ve got to pursue ’em. You’re foolish if you don’t try to pursue ’em and at least listen.”

The question now is the intensity of that dialogue. For example, Dallas still is said to be reluctant to include forward Dirk Nowitzki in its bid, with Indiana having similar reservations with center Jermaine O’Neal.

I personally would not like this deal to happen. Although I dont like Eddie Jones and I have no problem shipping Grant out of town, I dont think the Heat (Or Miami) needs a media whore like Shaq around. Yes, Miami needs a big man in the middle, all he would have to do is grab rebounds and block shots – and REALLY hustle. Shaq has been taking nights off for the past 2 seasons. In addition to the Heat needing a center they also need a backup point guard. Why they picked that high school kid INSTEAD of Jameer Nelson I’ll never know. Now Austin signed with Toronto… Pat Riley WTF man?!?!

The much-anticipated Wimbledon quarterfinal between defending champion Serena Williams and Jennifer Capriati fell far short of its billing Wednesday, as Williams raced to a 6-1, 6-1 victory in 45 minutes. Thousands of fans were still filing into Center Court when the match ended.

Capriati held serve the first game, but then Williams won eight straight games to go up 6-1, 2-0, and never looked back. She won on a stretch forehand volley, one of the few points in which she had to exert herself. Williams’ semifinal opponent is Amelie Mauresmo of France, who beat Paola Suarez 6-0, 5-7, 6-1.

”When you play Jennifer, you’ve got to come out really strong,” said Williams, who had lost to Capriati their last two meetings. “Since I’ve been playing her, I’ve been trying to come out strong and I always seem to come out slow, so I wanted to come out smokin’.”

Capriati had no answers.

Capriati complained that she was distracted by the media hype surrounding the match.

Serena Williams waves to the crowd after defeating Spain’s Magui Serna in their Women’s Singles match on the Centre Court at Wimbledon, Sunday, June 27, 2004.

A few stats on Serena. Born Sep. 26, 1981 in Saginaw, MI. She is 5’9″ and 130 pounds. Plays right handed. She is currently ranked 10th in the ATP standings. Her sister Venus is currently ranked 8th.