Shaquille O'Neal checks in at No. 7 in The Athletic's 'The Basketball 100': 'Star of stars'

“The Basketball 100” is the definitive rating of the 100 biggest NBA gamers of all time from The Athletic’s staff of award-winning writers and analysts, together with veteran columnists David Aldridge and John Hollinger. This excerpt is reprinted from the guide, which additionally encompasses a foreword by Corridor of Famer Charles Barkley.

“The Basketball 100” is out there Nov. 26. Pre-order it right here. Learn David Aldridge’s introduction and all the excerpts right here.

He’s lovable. The 7-foot-1 teddy bear with the animated common promoting auto insurance coverage. He’s on the duvet of Frosted Flakes and is a pizza pitchman with an govt function at Papa John’s. You may have the ability to relate to him if you happen to deal with your again ache with Icy Scorching. He has gold (Gold Bond and an Olympic medal), and don’t overlook in regards to the weekly back-and-forths with Charles Barkley on TNT’s Contained in the NBA.

Shaquille O’Neal could also be retired from the NBA, however he’s in every single place.

For a sure era, it’s laborious to think about O’Neal as one of many biggest basketball gamers ever. However the playful huge man was a punishing athlete who didn’t simply dunk. “The Diesel” dunked via opponents, leaving our bodies and damaged backboards in his wake. And never simply backboards, as Darryl Dawkins did, however entire stanchions. He did it whereas having enjoyable and whereas intimidating opposing huge males.

For the play that finest captures that, let’s rewind to March 25, 1999, because the Los Angeles Lakers hosted the New York Knicks. O’Neal receives a cross within the put up from Kobe Bryant and backs down Knicks heart Chris Dudley. Earlier than Dudley reacts, he’s below the rim as O’Neal spins to face the basket for a nasty dunk. Dudley’s face leads to Shaq’s torso. O’Neal kicks out his legs — identical to his Dunkman brand — as Dudley hangs on to O’Neal’s legs for pricey life. The dunk was highly effective and disrespectful sufficient, however Shaq provides a shove on the finish as if he have been a giant sibling pushing a little bit brother to the bottom. It was highly effective, skillful, and a bit petty.

Dudley falls to the Nice Western Discussion board flooring, will get up, and chucks the ball at O’Neal.

It’s OK, Chris. You weren’t the primary or the final to really feel the wrath of Shaq. O’Neal was probably the most dominant bodily power of his era. His mixture of dimension, energy, and basketball IQ made him a once-in-a-lifetime expertise. From his NBA arrival in 1992 in Orlando till his retirement in 2011, O’Neal was a larger-than-life character and participant who took entertaining the followers as critically as overpowering opponents.

“The largest star of stars,” stated Tyronn Lue, Los Angeles Clippers coach and former teammate of O’Neal for 3 seasons with the Lakers. “I believe he was an immediate draw at Lakers video games, him and Kobe [Bryant], with what they meant to the Lakers and what they meant to town of LA.”

And it wasn’t solely Los Angeles. Simply how large was O’Neal’s presence? He was named to the NBA’s fiftieth Anniversary Workforce in 1996 — a mere 4 seasons into his profession.

It was not effectively obtained by everybody, however Shaq lived as much as the lofty recognition to cement himself as maybe probably the most bodily dominant put up presence in league historical past, with solely Wilt Chamberlain being within the dialog. He was like nothing the league had seen, even with Hakeem Olajuwon, Patrick Ewing, and David Robinson among the many NBA’s finest bigs.

“He was simply larger and stronger and quicker than all the different guys,” stated Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr, who was traded to Orlando in December 1992. “Pretty much as good as Patrick Ewing was, nearly as good as Hakeem Olajuwon was, David Robinson, these guys have been all Corridor of Famers, superb gamers. With each a type of opponents, Shaq was both larger, stronger or quicker or a mix of all the things.

“He was a lot larger than Hakeem, he was a lot thicker than David, he was a lot quicker than Patrick. It was like he all the time had this bodily benefit. As a result of he was so uncooked and so younger, the opposite guys had a ability benefit over him and that’s what he needed to work onthose first few years within the league.”

A “uncooked” O’Neal averaged 23.4 factors, 13.9 rebounds, and three.5 blocks in successful NBA Rookie of the 12 months, the beginning of what would develop into one of many biggest runs by one of many biggest facilities of all time. O’Neal is the final true heart to be the point of interest of a championship staff (if you happen to imagine Tim Duncan just isn’t a middle). He received three consecutive NBA Finals MVPs (2000-2002), one thing solely Michael Jordan (twice) has executed.

O’Neal is a four-time NBA champion, twice a league scoring champion and the 2000 league MVP. He was a 15-time All-Star, successful All-Star MVP 3 times. O’Neal was named to 14 All-NBA groups, together with eight first-team alternatives. He retired with 28,596 factors, now ninth in league historical past.

He additionally modified the sport away from the courtroom. Large males weren’t typically the lifetime of the celebration. Some gave off a vibe of being uncomfortable or simply pissed off with being so tall. Not O’Neal. He had a magnetic appeal and swagger that drew followers and teammates to him.

“The factor that stood out most was his zest for all times,” Kerr stated. “He had this unimaginable presence and character that went past being a giant man. Most huge guys that I’d been round have been withdrawn, not precisely charismatic, quiet, and this man was only a power from a character, presence standpoint.”

He was 7-foot-1 and a muscular 294 kilos when he entered the NBA and performed at greater than 300 kilos at his peak (he was listed at 325 kilos throughout his title runs). His shoulders have been so broad that he made even the most important of NBA huge males look as in the event that they have been small forwards.

If the NBA had a Paul Bunyanesque determine, it was O’Neal. Moreover the brute energy that made stopping his dunks unattainable, O’Neal additionally was remarkably gentle on his ft. He was no plodding lug via the paint. O’Neal was blessed with immaculate footwork, a fast first step, and good contact across the rim that he’d exhibit on his turnaround jumper or hook shot.

“That’s what made him unimaginable in a single sense — the truth that he was the most important, strongest man within the league, however he was quick,” former teammate Luke Walton stated. “He might cross the ball, however he performed within the triangle offense, so there’s no simply pick-and-roll, and he understood the sport; he was sensible, he was a scholar of the sport.”

Like George Mikan and Wilt Chamberlain, nice facilities who performed earlier than him, O’Neal modified the sport together with his dominance and dimension. He demoralized so many defenders that the NBA allowed zone defenses to return in 2001-02. It would as effectively have been known as the Shaq Zone Protection provision. Nothing says dominant fairly just like the league altering guidelines simply to present the opposition an opportunity.

“It was troublesome to [defend] in opposition to Shaq since you needed to do it individually,” stated O’Neal’s Lakers coach Phil Jackson. “You can double-team, however you needed to do it in a sure approach, and Shaq was an awesome passer of the put up. He was the person who modified the sport into what now we have now on this period, which has eradicated plenty of put up play, which is OK.

“It is best to have the ability to play basketball nonetheless you need to play it, however Shaq’s dominance modified the sport.”

One of the best protection in opposition to O’Neal was to place him on the free-throw line. He shot 52.7 p.c from the road for his profession, and “Hack-a- Shaq,” fouling O’Neal whether or not he had the ball or not, grew to become a well-liked tactic. O’Neal wasn’t only a star in Los Angeles. He was an icon who was simply as huge as any Hollywood star or chart-topping musical artist. He was Shaq — probably the most dominant participant on the courtroom and one of many largest presences off it.

“I believe when Shaq [signed] right here, it simply modified the entire dynamic of LA,” Lue stated. “How he was with the media, how he was together with his teammates, how he was with the followers, so he was big. He was most likely one of many largest folks in LA on the time.”

When issues fell aside with the Lakers after a 2004 NBA Finals loss to the Detroit Pistons and fixed bickering with Bryant, O’Neal was traded to Miami. Inside two seasons, the Warmth have been champions. At his finest, O’Neal in your staff meant you have been a title contender. He reached the NBA Finals with Orlando, the Lakers, and Miami.

There are a lot of accolades, however there are critics who imagine O’Neal ought to have been much more dominant if he had been extra critical in regards to the recreation.

Early in his profession, O’Neal was a platinum-selling rapper who additionally starred in films. His fun-loving persona endeared him to followers, however critics stated he ought to have centered extra on the sport.

After dropping within the 1995 NBA Finals when the Magic have been swept by the Rockets, O’Neal performed another season for Orlando earlier than bolting to Los Angeles, the place it was assumed he’d be a champion briefly order. However the cries about O’Neal being distracted grew because the Lakers have been being knocked out of the playoffs by Utah and San Antonio. Although O’Neal was a three-time Second Workforce All-Defensive second-team choice, the naysayers said that he was a defensive legal responsibility, particularly in opposition to the pick-and-roll.

Extra importantly, for all of the accolades, information gross sales, and films made that have been panned by critics, the most important knock on him was that he wasn’t a champion. He famously stated, “I’ve received at each stage besides school and the professionals.”

That each one modified in 2000 when a pushed O’Neal paired with Bryant to steer the Lakers on a run of three consecutive titles. O’Neal put up otherworldly numbers throughout his second NBA Finals look, averaging 38 factors, 16.7 rebounds, 2.3 assists, and a pair of.7 blocks per recreation in annihilating Indiana.

The 1999-2000 common season additionally resulted in O’Neal’s solely regular-season MVP award. He averaged a career-high 29.7 factors (led the league), 13.6 rebounds, 3.8 assists, and three.0 blocks. O’Neal led in field-goal proportion (.574), one among 9 occasions he paced the NBA. He additionally averaged a career-high 40 minutes, which is likely to be probably the most outstanding stat given his dimension and the beating he took from defenders who threw themselves on and at him.

In 2001, O’Neal helped put away Philadelphia, a staff that threw Dikembe Mutombo, a Corridor of Famer and four-time NBA Defensive Participant of the 12 months, and different 7-footers at O’Neal. It didn’t matter, as O’Neal received one other NBA Finals MVP by averaging 33 factors, 15.8 rebounds, 4.8 assists, and three.4 blocks. The Lakers swept New Jersey in 2002 with O’Neal averaging 36.3 factors, 12.3 rebounds, 3.8 assists, and a pair of.8 blocks for his third consecutive NBA Finals MVP.

Alongside the best way, O’Neal had a knack for irking his opponents. For him it was simply a part of the leisure. He known as the Sacramento Kings the “Queens” (a remark for which he later apologized for making). After the Lakers went via the Kings in a seven-game Western Convention finals in 2002 en path to their third title, O’Neal declared Sacramento was now not the capital of California.

His followers beloved it. His critics, effectively, there have been all the time going to be critics.

However even with success got here drama. Bryant publicly complained about O’Neal not being in form. O’Neal complained the younger star was egocentric. A few of Bryant’s disdain could possibly be traced again to the 2002-03 season, when O’Neal delayed surgical procedure on an injured toe and missed the beginning of the season as a result of he was going to “heal on firm time.” Bryant took a beating; the Lakers began the season 11-19 and ended the season fifth within the West earlier than being eradicated by the Spurs within the convention semifinals.

Essentially the most dynamic one-two combo within the league cut up after that loss within the 2004 NBA Finals to Detroit. The Lakers, siding with the youthful, seemingly extra dedicated Bryant, traded O’Neal to Miami.

However O’Neal wasn’t washed up. A rededicated O’Neal helped the Warmth attain the Jap Convention finals and the 2006 NBA Finals. However as an alternative of being the centerpiece, O’Neal did what he didn’t do in LA and willingly deferred to the rising guard Dwyane Wade, who led the Warmth to a title in six video games over the Dallas Mavericks and received NBA Finals MVP.

Miami traded O’Neal to Phoenix in February 2008 after a tough begin to the season and a rift with Pat Riley. The deal to the Suns was distinctive in that coach Mike D’Antoni carried out his Seven Seconds or Much less offense partially to counter O’Neal when he was with the Lakers. Now an older O’Neal could possibly be used to counter an outdated nemesis, Duncan, ought to the Spurs be an issue for the Suns within the postseason.

Kerr stated O’Neal’s time within the triangle offense below Jackson allowed him to make such an adjustment. A lot of that offense ran via O’Neal, who was an excellent passer and will learn the ground effectively.

“He was a extremely sensible participant,” Kerr stated. “I believe all the things got here collectively for him in LA. Phil Jackson was nice for him and vice versa, and I believe he took that have from LA and carried that information, that basketball IQ. I believe it carried ahead and allowed him to play deeper into his age than lots of people would have guessed.”

In 2009, O’Neal was an All-Star, successful co-All-Star MVP with Bryant as the previous teammates have been all smiles on that evening. However there can be no return to the NBA Finals for O’Neal, who would make stops in Cleveland and Boston earlier than retiring in 2011.

Bryant and O’Neal ended up on good phrases earlier than Bryant died in 2020, and that’s how most bear in mind O’Neal as a teammate. For as punishing as he was off the courtroom, he could possibly be as caring and gracious off it. He defended his teammates too.

“He was a incredible teammate from a standpoint of he made all the things enjoyable,” Walton stated. “He was laborious on the rookies, however on the courtroom, he had our backs. Anytime somebody would mess with us, Shaq would punish them for us. “So no matter he wished, we needed to do, however he had our backs. He was a lot enjoyable; he was dominant, and it was plenty of enjoyable to play with him.”

There aren’t facilities within the NBA like O’Neal anymore. Not that his mixture of dimension, energy, and ability can’t be duplicated, however as of late, facilities who don’t shoot the three and play on the perimeter are a uncommon group. Offenses aren’t centered on huge males resembling O’Neal, who planted themselves within the paint and made you pay.

However might a participant resembling Shaquille O’Neal work in immediately’s NBA?

“He would common 60,” Lue stated. “All of the small ball and all that, you wouldn’t have the ability to do this, not even an opportunity. The best way they play immediately, with Shaq, you’d by no means get away with that.”

Profession NBA stats: G: 1,207, Pts.: 23.7, Reb.: 10.9, Ast.: 2.5, Win Shares: 181.7, PER: 26.4Achievements: NBA MVP (’00), 14-time All-NBA, 15-time All-Star, NBA champ (’00, ’01, ’02, ’06), NBA Finals MVP (’00, ’01, ’02), Rookie of the 12 months (’93), Olympic gold (’96), Corridor of Fame (’16)

Excerpted from “The Basketball 100” printed by William Morrow. Copyright © 2024 by The Athletic Media Firm. Reprinted courtesy of HarperCollins Publishers

(Illustration: Kelsea Petersen / The Athletic; Picture: Sam Forencich / NBAE through Getty Photos)