Golden State Warriors 2013-14 Player Grades: Jermaine O’Neal

Lowlights:

Anytime you miss 26 games in a row because of an injury requiring surgery, that’s most likely going to be the lowlight of your season. After playing a combined 49 games in two seasons with the Boston Celtics and only 55 games with the Phoenix Suns the year after, O’Neal was probably hoping he’d be able to stay a bit healthier in California than he had the three years prior. Unfortunately, his injury left the Dubs shorthanded in the frontcourt and robbed O’Neal of garnering the recognition he deserved as an impressive backup big, especially in the playoffs when the Warriors needed him most.

That being said, O’Neal’s healthy time on the court didn’t always impress either. In his second game of the season, O’Neal put up a 1-for-6 dud in 16 minutes against the Los Angeles Clippers. Against his former Suns on Feb. 8, O’Neal went 4-for-11 from the field in another loss. A month later, O’Neal went through a three-game stretch where he shot 2-for-12 from the floor. Fortunately for O’Neal, games where he shot sub-.500 were the exception.