Shaquille O’Neal
While he’s no longer hitting the hardwood, Shaquille O’Neal still casts a massive shadow over the NBA landscape.
After towering over the NCAA competition at LSU, O’Neal entered into the 1992 NBA Draft and joined the Orlando Magic as the first overall pick. Shaq didn’t miss a beat and quickly emerged as a dominant force in the paint. A championship, however, never materialized, and the big man eventually left for Hollywood.
With the Lakers, O’Neal famously teamed up with Kobe Bryant. While the two men didn’t always see eye-to-eye, they did earn three NBA titles together in Los Angeles. The Diesel then returned to Florida, where he’d win a fourth ring with the Miami Heat, before bouncing around the league and ultimately retiring in 2011.
In addition to his on-court exploits — Shaq still stands tall as one of the greatest big men to ever play the game — the center hasn’t slowed down in retirement. He’s a prolific investor, a celebrity pitchman, and a part of TNT’s NBA coverage.
- Former teams: Orlando Magic, Los Angeles Lakers, Miami Heat, Phoenix Suns, Cleveland Cavaliers, Boston Celtics
- Position: Center
- Accomplishments: Four-time NBA champion, three-time NBA Finals MVP, 1993 Rookie of the Year, 2000 NBA MVP, inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2016
- Drafted: No. 1 overall in 1992 by the Orlando Magic
- Shooting hand: Right
- Nicknames: Shaq, Diesel, The Big Aristotle
Read the latest about Shaquille O’Neal’s playing career and history:
The Utah Jazz defeated the Los Angeles Lakers in the 1997 Western Conference semifinals, prompting Jazz center Greg Ostertag to unload with some trash talk. According to Karl Malone, then-Lakers center Shaquille O’Neal responded by smacking Ostertag in the face the following preseason after a brief confrontation. Ostertag was never the same.
Shaquille O’Neal thought Julius Erving was God the first time he met the NBA Hall of Famer.
Shaquille O’Neal has become a celebrity in his own right. He not only had a ton of on-court success with multiple teams, but he has become a star outside of basketball as well. However, the big man still gets star-struck. Shaq even once called a timeout on the Lakers just because he saw Halle Berry.
Shaquille O’Neal has always been peeved by losing out on more MVP trophies because of Steve Nash’s success in the “seven seconds or less” Suns offenses.
In an era full of Hall of Fame centers, Shaquille O’Neal’s most frustrating challenge came in the form of a man nicknamed “Big Country.”
Shaquille O’Neal actually bought a house he didn’t even like so that he could become neighbors with Paula Abdul.
Shaquille O’Neal went full Hulk mode after a playoff loss and incredibly ripped five urinals clean off the wall.
Former Lakers star Shaquille O’Neal looked to the past for motivation ahead of the 2000 NBA Finals against Rik Smits and the Indiana Pacers.
Shaquille O’Neal left the Orlando Magic for a few reasons. But one big one was a newspaper poll asking fans if the superstar center was worth the money.
Chris Webber was, and still is, jaded by Sacramento’s loss to the Lakers in the 2002 Western Conference Finals and said Shaquille O’Neal and Co. needed the help of “dirty refs” to win the series.
