Shaquille O'Neal

Shaquille O'Neal

O'Neal in 2011
Personal information
Born	(1972-03-06) March 6, 1972 Newark, New Jersey
Nationality	American
Listed height	7 ft 1 in (2.16 m)
Listed weight	325 lb (147 kg)
Career information
High school	Robert G. Cole (San Antonio, Texas)
College	LSU (1989–1992)
NBA draft	1992 / Round: 1 / Pick: 1st overall
Selected by the Orlando Magic
Playing career	1992–2011
Position	Center
Number	32, 34, 33, 36
Career history
1992–1996	Orlando Magic
1996–2004	Los Angeles Lakers
2004–2008	Miami Heat
2008–2009	Phoenix Suns
2009–2010	Cleveland Cavaliers
2010–2011	Boston Celtics
Career highlights and awards
4× NBA champion (2000, 2001, 2002, 2006) 3× NBA Finals MVP (2000–2002) NBA Most Valuable Player (2000) 15× NBA All-Star (1993–1998, 2000–2007, 2009) 3× NBA All-Star Game MVP (2000, 2004, 2009) 8× All-NBA First Team (1998, 2000–2006) 2× All-NBA Second Team (1995, 1999) 4× All-NBA Third Team (1994, 1996, 1997, 2009) 3× All-Defensive Second Team (2000, 2001, 2003) NBA Rookie of the Year (1993) 2× NBA scoring champion (1995, 2000) NBA 50th Anniversary Team No. 34 retired by Los Angeles Lakers FIBA World Championship MVP (1994) USA Basketball Male Athlete of the Year (1994) College national player of the year (1992) 2× Consensus first-team All-American (1991, 1992) 2× SEC Player of the Year (1991, 1992) McDonald's All-American MVP (1989)
Career statistics
Points	28,596 (23.7 ppg)
Rebounds	13,099 (10.9 rpg)
Blocks	2,732 (2.3 bpg)
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com
College Basketball Hall of Fame Inducted in 2014
Medals Men's basketball Competitor for the  United States Olympic Games 1996 Atlanta Team competition World Championship 1994 Canada Team competition

Shaquille Rashaun O'Neal (/ʃəˈkiːl/ shə-KEEL; born March 6, 1972), nicknamed Shaq (/ˈʃæk/ SHAK), is a retired American professional basketball player who is currently an analyst on the television program Inside the NBA. Listed at 7 ft 1 in (2.16 m) tall^[1] and weighing 325 pounds (147 kg), he was one of the heaviest players ever to play in the NBA. O'Neal played for six teams throughout his 19-year NBA career. He was announced as a nominee for the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame on December 21, 2015.^[2]

Following his career at Louisiana State University, O'Neal was drafted by the Orlando Magic with the first overall pick in the 1992 NBA draft. He quickly became one of the best centers in the league, winning Rookie of the Year in 1992–93 and later leading his team to the 1995 NBA Finals. After four years with the Magic, O'Neal signed as a free agent with the Los Angeles Lakers. They won three consecutive championships in 2000, 2001, and 2002. Amid tension between O'Neal and Kobe Bryant, O'Neal was traded to the Miami Heat in 2004, and his fourth NBA championship followed in 2006. Midway through the 2007–2008 season he was traded to the Phoenix Suns. After a season-and-a-half with the Suns, O'Neal was traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 2009–10 season.^[3] O'Neal played for the Boston Celtics in the 2010–11 season before retiring.^[4]

O'Neal's individual accolades include the 1999–2000 MVP award, the 1992–93 NBA Rookie of the Year award, 15 All-Star game selections, three All-Star Game MVP awards, three Finals MVP awards, two scoring titles, 14 All-NBA team selections, and three NBA All-Defensive Team selections. He is one of only three players to win NBA MVP, All-Star game MVP and Finals MVP awards in the same year (2000); the other players are Willis Reed in 1970 and Michael Jordan in 1996 and 1998. He ranks 7th all-time in points scored, 5th in field goals, 13th in rebounds, and 7th in blocks. Largely due to his ability to dunk the basketball, O'Neal also ranks 3rd all-time in field goal percentage (58.2%).^[5]

In addition to his basketball career, O'Neal has released four rap albums, with his first, Shaq Diesel, going platinum. He has appeared in numerous films and has starred in his own reality shows, Shaq's Big Challenge and Shaq Vs..

Early life

O'Neal was born on March 6, 1972 in Newark, New Jersey, to Lucille O'Neal and Joseph Toney, an All-State guard in high school who was offered a basketball scholarship to play at Seton Hall. Toney struggled with drug addiction and was imprisoned for drug possession when O'Neal was an infant. Upon his release, he did not resume a place in O'Neal's life and instead agreed to relinquish his parental rights to O'Neal's stepfather, Phillip A. Harrison, a career Army Reserve sergeant.^[6][7] O'Neal remains estranged from his biological father; he and Toney have never spoken, and O'Neal has expressed no interest in establishing a relationship.^[7] On his 1994 rap album, Shaq Fu: The Return, O'Neal voiced his feelings of disdain for Toney in the song "Biological Didn't Bother", dismissing him with the line "Phil is my father."

O'Neal credits the Boys and Girls Club of America in Newark with giving him a safe place to play and keeping him off the streets. "It gave me something to do," he said. "I'd just go there to shoot. I didn't even play on a team."^[8] Because of his stepfather's career in the military, the family left Newark, moving to military bases in Germany and Texas.^[9]

At Robert G. Cole High School in San Antonio, Texas, O'Neal led his team to a 68–1 record over two years and helped the team win the state championship during his senior year.^[10] His 791 rebounds during the 1989 season remains a state record for a player in any classification.^[11] O'Neal's tendency to make hook shots earned comparisons to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, inspiring him to wear the same jersey number as Abdul-Jabbar, 33. However, the unavailability of said number in high school forced him to wear 32 before college.^[12]

On January 31, 2012, O’Neal was honored as one of the 35 Greatest McDonald's All-Americans.^[13]

College career

After graduating from high school, O'Neal studied business at Louisiana State University. He had first met Dale Brown, LSU's men's basketball coach, years earlier in Europe. O'Neal's stepfather was stationed on a U.S. Army base at Wildflecken, West Germany. While playing for Brown at LSU, O'Neal was a two-time All-American, two-time SEC Player of the Year, and received the Adolph Rupp Trophy as NCAA men's basketball player of the year in 1991; he was also named college player of the year by AP and UPI. O'Neal left LSU early to pursue his NBA career, but continued his education even after becoming a professional player.^[14] He was later inducted into the LSU Hall of Fame.^[15] A 900-pound bronze statue of O'Neal is located in front of the LSU Tigers Basketball Practice Facility.^[16]

NBA career

Orlando Magic (1992–1996)

The Orlando Magic drafted O'Neal with the 1st overall pick in the 1992 NBA draft. During that summer, prior to moving to Orlando, he spent a significant amount of time in Los Angeles under the tutelage of Hall of Famer Magic Johnson.^[17] Given Terry Catledge eventually refused to give O'Neal the 33 jersey, he relented by going back to the 32 from his high school days.^[12] O'Neal was named the Player of the Week in his first week in the NBA, becoming the first player to do so.^[18] During his rookie season, O'Neal averaged 23.4 points on 56.2% shooting, 13.9 rebounds, and 3.5 blocks per game for the season. He was named the 1993 NBA Rookie of the Year and became the first rookie to be voted an All-Star starter since Michael Jordan in 1985.^[19] The Magic finished 41–41, winning 20 more games than the previous season; however, the team ultimately missed the playoffs by virtue of a tie-breaker with the Indiana Pacers. On more than one occasion during the year, Sports Illustrated writer Jack McCallum overheard O'Neal saying, "We've got to get [head coach] Matty [Guokas] out of here and bring in [assistant] Brian [Hill]."^[20]

In 1993–1994, O'Neal's second season, Hill was the coach and Guokas was reassigned to the front office.^[21] O'Neal improved his scoring average to 29.4 points (second in the league to David Robinson) while leading the NBA in field goal percentage at 60%. On November 20, 1993, against the New Jersey Nets, O'Neal registered the first triple-double of his career, recording 24 points to go along with career highs of 28 rebounds and 15 blocks.^[22] He was voted into the All-Star game and also made the All-NBA 3rd Team. Teamed with newly drafted Anfernee "Penny" Hardaway, the Magic finished with a record of 50–32 and made the playoffs for the first time in franchise history. In his first playoff series, O'Neal averaged 20.7 points and 13.3 rebounds in a losing effort as the Magic lost every game to the Indiana Pacers.

O'Neal's third season in 1994-95 had him leading the NBA in scoring with a 29.3 point average, while finishing second in MVP voting to David Robinson and entering his third straight All-Star Game along with Hardaway. They formed one of the league's top duos and helped Orlando to a 57–25 record and the Atlantic Division crown. The Magic won their first ever playoff series against the Boston Celtics in the 1995 NBA Playoffs. They then defeated the Chicago Bulls in the conference semi-finals. After beating Reggie Miller's Indiana Pacers, the Magic reached the NBA Finals, facing the defending NBA champion Houston Rockets. O'Neal played well in his first Finals appearance, averaging 28 points on 59.5% shooting, 12.5 rebounds, and 6.3 assists. Despite this, the Rockets, led by future Hall-of-Famers Hakeem Olajuwon and Clyde Drexler, swept the series in four games.^[23]

O'Neal was injured for a great deal of the 1995–96 season, missing 28 games. He averaged 26.6 points and 11 rebounds per game, made the All-NBA 3rd Team, and played in his 4th All-Star Game. Despite O'Neal's injuries, the Magic finished with a regular season record of 60–22, second in the Eastern conference to the Chicago Bulls, who finished with an NBA record 72 wins. Orlando easily defeated the Detroit Pistons and the Atlanta Hawks in the first two rounds of the 1996 NBA Playoffs; however, they were no match for Jordan's Bulls, who swept them in the Eastern Conference Finals.

Los Angeles Lakers (1996–2004)

O'Neal became a free agent after the 1995–96 NBA season. In the summer of 1996, O'Neal was named to the United States Olympic basketball team, and was later part of the gold medal-winning team at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta. While the Olympic basketball team was training in Orlando, the Orlando Sentinel published a poll that asked whether the Magic should fire Hill if that were one of O'Neal's conditions for returning.^[24][25] 82% answered "no".^[24] O'Neal had a power struggle while playing under Hill.^[26][27] He said the team "just didn't respect [Hill]."^[28] Another question in the poll asked, "Is Shaq worth $115 million?" in reference to the amount of the Magic's offer. 91.3% of the response was "no".^[25][26] O'Neal's Olympic teammates rode him hard over the poll.^[25][27] He was also upset that the Orlando media implied O'Neal was not a good role model for having a child with his longtime girlfriend with no immediate plans to marry.^[24] O'Neal compared his lack of privacy in Orlando to "feeling like a big fish in a dried-up pond."^[29] O'Neal also learned that Hardaway considered himself the leader of the Magic and did not want O'Neal making more money than him.^[30] On the team's first full day at the Olympics in Atlanta, it was announced that O'Neal would join the Los Angeles Lakers on a seven-year, $121 million contract.^[31][32] He insisted he did not choose Los Angeles for the money. "I'm tired of hearing about money, money, money, money, money," O'Neal said after the signing. "I just want to play the game, drink Pepsi, wear Reebok," he added, referring to a couple of his product endorsements.^[33][34] The Lakers won 56 games during the 1996–97 season. O'Neal averaged 26.2 points and 12.5 rebounds in his first season with Los Angeles; however, he again missed over 30 games due to injury. The Lakers made the playoffs, but were eliminated in the second round by the Utah Jazz in five games.^[35] In his first playoff game for the Lakers, O'Neal scored 46 points against the Portland Trail Blazers, the most for the Lakers in a playoff game since Jerry West had 53 in 1969. On December 17, 1996, O'Neal shoved Dennis Rodman of the Chicago Bulls; Rodman's teammates Scottie Pippen and Michael Jordan restrained Rodman and prevented further conflict. The Los Angeles Daily News reported that O'Neal was willing to be suspended for fighting Rodman, and O'Neal said: "It's one thing to talk tough and one thing to be tough."^[36]

The following season, O'Neal averaged 28.3 points and 11.4 rebounds. He led the league with a 58.4 field goal percentage, the first of five consecutive seasons in which he did so. The Lakers finished the season 61–21, first in the Pacific Division, and were the second seed in the western conference during the 1998 NBA Playoffs. After defeating the Portland Trail Blazers and Seattle SuperSonics in the first two rounds, the Lakers again fell to the Jazz, this time in a 4–0 sweep.^[37]

With the tandem of O'Neal and teenage superstar Kobe Bryant, expectations for the Lakers increased. However, personnel changes were a source of instability during the 1998–99 season. Long-time Laker point guard Nick Van Exel was traded to the Denver Nuggets; his former backcourt partner Eddie Jones was packaged with back-up center Elden Campbell for Glen Rice to satisfy a demand by O'Neal for a shooter. Coach Del Harris was fired, and former Lakers forward Kurt Rambis finished the season as head coach. The Lakers finished with a 31–19 record during the lockout-shortened season. Although they made the playoffs, they were swept by the San Antonio Spurs, led by Tim Duncan and David Robinson in the second round of the Western Conference playoffs. The Spurs would go on to win their first NBA title in 1999.

Championship seasons

In 1999, prior to the 1999–2000 season, the Lakers hired Phil Jackson as head coach, and the team's fortunes soon changed. Jackson immediately challenged O'Neal, telling him "the [NBA's] MVP trophy should be named after him when he retired."^[38] Using Jackson's triangle offense, O'Neal and Bryant enjoyed tremendous success, leading the Lakers to three consecutive titles (2000, 2001, and 2002). O'Neal was named MVP of the NBA Finals all three times and had the highest scoring average for a center in NBA Finals history.^[39] In the November 10, 1999, game against the Houston Rockets, O'Neal and Charles Barkley were ejected. After O'Neal blocked a layup by Barkley, O'Neal shoved Barkley, who then threw the ball at O'Neal.^[40]

O'Neal was also voted the 1999–2000 regular season Most Valuable Player, one vote short of becoming the first unanimous MVP in NBA history. Fred Hickman, then of CNN, instead chose Allen Iverson, then of the Philadelphia 76ers who would go on to win MVP the next season. O'Neal also won the scoring title while finishing second in rebounds and third in blocked shots. Jackson's influence resulted in a newfound commitment by O'Neal to defense, resulting in his first All-Defensive Team selection (second-team) in 2000.^[41]

In the 2001 NBA Finals against the 76ers, O'Neal fouled out in Game 3 backing over Dikembe Mutombo, the 2000–2001 Defensive Player of the Year. "I didn't think the best defensive player in the game would be flopping like that. It's a shame that the referees buy into that," O'Neal said. "I wish he'd stand up and play me like a man instead of flopping and crying every time I back him down.^[42]

A month before the 2001–02 season's training camp, O'Neal had corrective surgery for a claw toe deformity in the smallest toe of his left foot.^[43] He opted against a more involved surgery to return quicker.^[44] He was ready for the start of the 2001–02 regular season, but the toe frequently bothered him.^[43] In January 2002 he was involved in a spectacular on-court brawl in a game against the Chicago Bulls. He punched center Brad Miller after an intentional foul to prevent a basket, resulting in a melee with Miller, forward Charles Oakley, and several other players.^[45] O'Neal was suspended for three games without pay and fined $15,000.^[46] For the season, O'Neal averaged 27.2 points and 10.7 rebounds, excellent statistics but below his career average; he was less of a defensive force during the season.^[43]

Matched up against the Sacramento Kings in the 2002 Western Conference finals, O'Neal said, "There is only one way to beat us. It starts with c and ends with t." O'Neal meant "cheat" in reference to the alleged flopping of Kings' center Vlade Divac. O'Neal referred to Divac as "she", and said he would never exaggerate contact to draw a foul. "I'm a guy with no talent who has gotten this way with hard work."^[47] After the 2001–2002 season, O'Neal told friends that he did not want another season of limping and being in virtually constant pain from his big right toe. His trademark mobility and explosion had been often absent. The corrective options ranged from reconstructive surgery on the toe to rehabilitation exercises with more shoe inserts and anti-inflammation medication. O'Neal was already wary of the long-term damage his frequent consumption of these medications might have. He did not want to rush a decision with his career potentially at risk.^[43]

Toe surgery to departure

O'Neal missed the first 12 games of the 2002–2003 season recovering from toe surgery.^[48] He was sidelined with hallux rigidus, a degenerative arthritis in his toe.^[49] He waited the whole summer until just before training camp for the surgery and explained, "I got hurt on company time, so I’ll heal on company time."^[50] O'Neal debated whether to have a more invasive surgery that would have kept him out an additional three months, but he opted against the more involved procedure.^[49] The Lakers started the season with a record of 11–19.^[51] After the Lakers fell to the fifth seed and failed to reach the Finals in 2003, the team made a concerted off-season effort to improve its roster. They sought the free-agent services of forward Karl Malone and aging guard Gary Payton, but due to salary cap restrictions, could not offer either one nearly as much money as they could have made with some other teams. O'Neal assisted in the recruitment efforts and personally persuaded both men to join the squad. Ultimately, both signed, each forgoing larger salaries in favor of a chance to win an NBA championship, which neither had accomplished in his career (and which neither would achieve with the Lakers). At the beginning of the 2003–04 season, O'Neal wanted a contract extension with a pay raise on his remaining three years for $30 million. The Lakers had hoped O'Neal would take less money due to his age, physical conditioning, and games missed due to injuries. During a preseason game, O'Neal had yelled at Lakers owner Jerry Buss, "Pay me."^[52] There had been increasing tension between O'Neal and Bryant, the feud climaxing on the eve of training camp prior to the 2003–2004 season when Kobe, in an interview with ESPN journalist Jim Gray, criticized Shaq for being out of shape, a poor leader, and putting his salary demands over the best interest of the Lakers.^[53]

The Lakers made the playoffs in 2004, and lost to the Detroit Pistons in the 2004 NBA Finals. Lakers assistant coach Tex Winter said, "Shaq defeated himself against Detroit. He played way too passively. He had one big game ... He's always interested in being a scorer, but he hasn't had nearly enough concentration on defense and rebounding."^[54] After the series, O'Neal was angered by comments made by Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak regarding O'Neal's future with the club, as well as by the departure of Lakers coach Phil Jackson at the request of Buss. O'Neal made comments indicating that he felt the team's decisions were centered on a desire to appease Bryant to the exclusion of all other concerns, and O'Neal promptly demanded a trade. Kupchak wanted the Dallas Mavericks's Dirk Nowitzki in return but Cuban refused to let his 7-footer go. However, Miami showed interest and eventually the two clubs agreed.^[55] Winter said, "[O'Neal] left because he couldn't get what he wanted—a huge pay raise. There was no way ownership could give him what he wanted. Shaq's demands held the franchise hostage, and the way he went about it didn't please the owner too much."^[56]

Miami Heat (2004–2008)

On July 14, 2004, O'Neal was traded to the Miami Heat for Caron Butler, Lamar Odom, Brian Grant, and a future first-round draft choice (who would turn into Jordan Farmar in the 2006 draft). O'Neal reverted from (his Lakers jersey) number 34 to number 32, which he had worn while playing for the Magic. Upon signing with the Heat, O'Neal promised the fans that he would bring a championship to Miami. He claimed one of the main reasons for wanting to be traded to Miami was because of their up-and-coming star Dwyane Wade, to whom he gave the nickname "Flash". With O'Neal on board, the new-look Heat surpassed expectations, claiming the best record in the Eastern Conference in 2004–05 with 59 wins. He played in 73 games, his most since 2001 season, averaged 22.9 points a game along with 10.4 rebounds and 2.3 blocks. Shaq also made his 12th consecutive All-Star Team, made the All-NBA 1st Team, and won the Eastern Conference player of the Month award for his performance in March. O'Neal also narrowly lost the 2004–05 MVP Award to Phoenix Suns guard Steve Nash in one of the closest votes in NBA history.^[57]

Despite being hobbled by a deep thigh bruise, O'Neal led the Heat to the Eastern Conference Finals and a Game 7 against the defending champion Detroit Pistons, losing by a narrow margin. Afterwards, O'Neal and others criticized Heat head coach Stan Van Gundy for not calling enough plays for O'Neal.^[58] In August 2005, O'Neal signed a 5-year-extension with the Heat for $100 million. Supporters applauded O'Neal's willingness to take what amounted to a pay cut and the Heat's decision to secure O'Neal's services for the long term. They contended that O'Neal was worth more than $20 million per year, particularly given that lesser players earned almost the same amount.^[59]

In the second game of the 2005–06 season, O'Neal injured his right ankle and subsequently missed the following 18 games. Upon O'Neal's return, Van Gundy resigned, citing family reasons, and Pat Riley assumed head coach responsibilities.^[50] Many critics stated that Heat coach Riley correctly managed O'Neal during the rest of the season, limiting his minutes to a career low. Riley felt doing so would allow O'Neal to be healthier and fresher come playoff time. Although O'Neal averaged career lows (or near-lows) in points, rebounds, and blocks, he said in an interview "Stats don't matter. I care about winning, not stats. If I score 0 points and we win I'm happy. If I score 50, 60 points, break the records, and we lose, I'm pissed off. 'Cause I knew I did something wrong. I'll have a hell of a season if I win the championship and average 20 points a game."^[60] During the 2005–06 season, the Heat recorded only a .500 record without O'Neal in the line-up.^[61]

On April 11, 2006, O'Neal recorded his second career triple-double against the Toronto Raptors with 15 points, 11 rebounds and a career high 10 assists.^[62] O'Neal finished the 2005–06 season as the league leader in field goal percentage.^[62]

Fourth championship

In the 2006 NBA Playoffs, the Heat first faced the younger Chicago Bulls, and O'Neal delivered a dominating 27 point, 16 rebound and 5 blocks performance in game 1 followed by a 22-point effort in game 2 to help Miami take a 2-0 lead in the series. Chicago would respond with two dominating performances at home to tie the series, but Miami would respond right back with a victory at home in game 5. Miami returned to Chicago and closed out the series in the 6th game, highlighted by another dominating performance by O'Neal who finished with 30 points and 20 rebounds. Miami advanced to face New Jersey, who won a surprising game 1 victory before the Heat won four straight to assure a rematch with Detroit. The Pistons had no answer for Wade throughout the series, while O'Neal delivered 21 points and 12 rebounds in game 3 followed by 27 points and 12 boards in game 4 to help Miami take a 3-2 series lead. The Pistons would win game 5 in Detroit, and Wade would once again get injured, but the Heat held on to win game 6 with O'Neal scoring 28 points with 16 rebounds and 5 blocks to help Miami reach their first ever NBA Finals.^[63]

In the Finals, the Heat were not favored to win the title against the Dallas Mavericks led by Dirk Nowitzki, and the Mavericks won the first two games at home in dominating fashion. The Heat led by Wade and a balanced effort by O'Neal, Antoine Walker and Jason Williams would go on to win all three of the next games at home, before closing out the series in Dallas to deliver the first NBA title for the franchise and O'Neal fourth title. With Wade carrying the offensive load, O'Neal did not need to have a dominating series, and finished with an average of 13.7 points and 10.2 rebounds for the series.^[63]

Surgery and Wade's injury

In the 2006–07 season, O'Neal missed 35 games after an injury to his left knee in November required surgery.^[64][65] After one of those missed games, a Christmas Day match-up against the Lakers, he ripped Jackson, who O'Neal had once called a second father, referring to his former coach as Benedict Arnold. Jackson had previously said, "The only person I've ever [coached] that hasn't been a worker ... is probably Shaq."^[66] The Heat struggled during O'Neal's absence,^[67] but with his return won seven of their next eight games. Bad luck still haunted the squad, however, as Wade dislocated his left shoulder, leaving O'Neal as the focus of the team.^[67] Critics doubted that O'Neal, now in his mid-thirties, could carry the team into the playoffs.^[68] The Heat went on a winning streak that kept them in the race for a playoff spot, which they finally secured against the Cleveland Cavaliers on April 5.^[67]

In a rematch of the year before, the Heat faced the Bulls in the first round of the 2006–07 NBA playoffs. The Heat struggled against the Bulls and although O'Neal put up reasonable numbers, he was not able to dominate the series. The Bulls swept the Heat, the first time in 50 years a defending NBA champion was swept in the opening round.^[69] It was the first time in 13 years that O'Neal did not advance into the second round. In the 2006–07 season O'Neal reached 25,000 career points, becoming the 14th player in NBA history to accomplish that milestone. However, it was the first season in O'Neal's career that his scoring average dropped below 20 points per game.^[5]

2007–2008 season

O'Neal experienced a rough start for the 2007–08 season, averaging career lows in points, rebounds and blocks. His role in the offense diminished, as he attempted only 10 field goals per game, versus his career average of 17. In addition, O'Neal was plagued by fouls, and during one stretch fouled out of five consecutive games. O'Neal's streak of 14 straight All-Star appearances ended that season.^[5] O'Neal again missed games due to injuries, and the Heat had a 15–game losing streak.^[70] According to O'Neal, Riley thought he was faking the injury.^[71] During a practice in February 2008, O'Neal got into an altercation with Riley over the coach ordering a tardy Jason Williams to leave practice. The two argued face-to-face, with O'Neal poking Riley in the chest and Riley slapping his finger away. Riley soon after decided to trade O'Neal.^[72] O'Neal said his relationship with Wade was not "all that good" by the time he left Miami, but he did not express disappointment at Wade for failing to stand up for him.^[73]

O'Neal played 33 games for the Miami Heat in the 2007–08 season prior to being traded to the Phoenix Suns. O'Neal started all 33 games and averaged 14.2 points per game. Following the trade to Phoenix, O'Neal averaged 12.9 ppg while starting all 28 games with the Suns.

Phoenix Suns (2008–2009)

The Phoenix Suns acquired O'Neal in February 2008 from the league-worst Miami Heat, who had a record at the time of the trade of 9-37, in exchange for Shawn Marion and Marcus Banks.^[74] O'Neal made his Suns debut on February 20, 2008 against his former Lakers team, scoring 15 points and grabbing 9 rebounds in the process. The Lakers won, 130–124. O'Neal was upbeat in a post-game press conference, stating: "I will take the blame for this loss because I wasn't in tune with the guys [...] But give me four or five days to really get in tune and I'll get it."^[75]

In 28 regular-season games, O'Neal averaged 12.9 points and 10.6 rebounds,^[76] good enough to make the playoffs. One of the reasons for the trade was to limit Tim Duncan in the event of a postseason matchup between the Suns and the San Antonio Spurs, especially after the Suns' six-game elimination by the Spurs in the 2007 NBA Playoffs.^[77] O'Neal and the Phoenix Suns did face the Spurs in the first round of the playoffs, but they were once again eliminated, in five games. O'Neal averaged 15.2 points, 9.2 rebounds and 1.0 assists per game.^[76]

O'Neal preferred his new situation with the Suns over the Heat. "I love playing for this coach and I love playing with these guys," O'Neal said. "We have professionals who know what to do. No one is asking me to play with [his former Heat teammates] Chris Quinn or Ricky Davis. I'm actually on a team again." Riley felt O'Neal was wrong for maligning his former teammates. O'Neal responded with an expletive toward Riley, who he often referred to as the "great Pat Riley" while playing for the Heat.^[78] O'Neal credited the Suns training staff with prolonging his career.^[79] They connected his arthritic toe, which would not bend, to the alteration of his jump that consequently was straining his leg. The trainers had him concentrate on building his core strength, flexibility, and balance.^[80]

The 2008–09 season improved for O'Neal, who averaged 18 pts, 9 rebounds, and 1.6 blocks through the first half (41 games) of the season, leading the Suns to a 23–18 record and 2nd place in their division.^[81] He returned to the All-Star Game in 2009 and emerged as co-MVP along with ex-teammate Kobe Bryant.

On February 27, 2009, O'Neal scored 45 points and grabbed 11 rebounds, his 49th career 40-point game, beating the Toronto Raptors 133–113.

In a matchup against Orlando on March 3, 2009, O'Neal was outscored by Magic center Dwight Howard, 21–19. "I'm really too old to be trying to outscore 18-year-olds," O'Neal said, referring to the then 23-year-old Howard. "It's not really my role anymore." O'Neal was double-teamed most of the night. "I like to play people one-on-one. My whole career I had to play people one-on-one. Never once had to double or ask for a double. But it's cool," said O'Neal. During the game, O'Neal flopped against Howard. Magic coach Stan Van Gundy, who had coached O'Neal with the Heat, was "very disappointed cause [O'Neal] knows what it's like. Let's stand up and play like men, and I think our guy did that tonight."^[82] O'Neal responded, "Flopping is playing like that your whole career. I was trying to take the charge, trying to get a call. It probably was a flop, but flopping is the wrong use of words. Flopping would describe his coaching."^[83] Mark Madsen, a Lakers teammate of O'Neal's for three years, found it amusing since "everyone in the league tries to flop on Shaq and Shaq never flops back."^[84] In a 2006 interview in TIME, O'Neal said if he were NBA commissioner, he would "Make a guy have to beat a guy—not flop and get calls and be nice to the referees and kiss ass."^[85]

On March 6, O'Neal talked about the upcoming game against the Rockets and Yao Ming. “It’s not going to be man-on-man, so don’t even try that,” says O’Neal with an incredulous laugh. “They’re going to double and triple me like everybody else ... I rarely get to play [Yao] one-on-one ... But when I play him (on defense), it’s just going to be me down there. So don’t try to make it a Yao versus Shaq thing, when it’s Shaq versus four other guys."^[86]

The 2009 NBA Playoffs was also the first time since O'Neal's rookie season in 1992–93 that he did not participate in the playoffs. He was named as a member of the All-NBA Third Team. The Suns notified O'Neal he might be traded to cut costs.^[87]

Cleveland Cavaliers (2009–2010)

On June 25, 2009, O'Neal was traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers for Sasha Pavlovic, Ben Wallace, $500,000 and a 2010-second round draft pick.^[88] Upon arriving in Cleveland, O'Neal said, "My motto is very simple: Win a Ring for the King," referring to LeBron James.^[89] James was the leader of the team, and O'Neal deferred to him.^[90]

On Friday, February 25, 2010 O'Neal suffered a severe right thumb injury while attempting to go up for a shot against Glen Davis of the Boston Celtics.^[91] He had surgery on the thumb on March 1 and returned to play on April 17 in the first round playoff game against the Chicago Bulls.^[92]

O'Neal averaged career lows in almost every major statistical category, taking on a much less significant role than in previous years. His presence in the post was not as significant as in years past. After the retirement of Lindsey Hunter on March 5, O'Neal became the NBA’s oldest active player. He returned to the starting line-up in time for the 2010 NBA Playoffs. The Cavaliers swiftly defeated the Chicago Bulls in the first round, yet Cleveland became the first team in NBA history to miss the NBA Finals after laying claim to the NBA's top playoff seed for two consecutive seasons. On May 13, the Cavaliers were eliminated from the playoffs, losing to the Boston Celtics 4–2 in the Eastern Conference semifinals.

Boston Celtics (2010–2011)

Upon hearing Bryant comment that he had more rings than O'Neal, Wyc Grousbeck, principal owner of the Celtics, saw an opportunity to acquire O'Neal.^[93] Celtics coach Doc Rivers agreed to the signing on the condition that O'Neal would not receive preferential treatment nor could he cause any locker room problems like in Los Angeles or Miami.^[94] On August 4, 2010, the Celtics announced that they had signed O'Neal.^[95] The contract was for two years at the veteran minimum salary for a total contract value of $2.8 million.^[96] O'Neal wanted the larger mid-level exception contract, but the Celtics chose instead to give it to Jermaine O'Neal.^[97] The Atlanta Hawks and the Dallas Mavericks also expressed interest but had stalled on O'Neal's salary demands.^[98][99] He was introduced by the Celtics on August 10, 2010, and chose the number 36.^[100]

O'Neal said he didn't "compete with little guys who run around dominating the ball, throwing up 30 shots a night—like D–Wade, Kobe." O'Neal added that he was only competing against Duncan: "If Tim Duncan gets five rings, then that gives some writer the chance to say 'Duncan is the best,' and I can't have that."^[101] Publicly, he insisted he did not care whether he started or substituted for the Celtics, but expected to be part of the second unit.^[101] Privately, he wanted to start, but kept it to himself.^[102] O'Neal missed games throughout the season due to an assortment of ailments to his right leg^[103] including knee,^[104] calf,^[105] hip,^[106] and Achilles injuries.^[107] The Celtics traded away center Kendrick Perkins in February partially due to the expectation that O'Neal would return to fill Perkins' role. The Celtics were 33–10 in games Perkins had missed during the year due to injury,^[103] and they were 19–3 in games that O'Neal played over 20 minutes.^[108] After requesting a cortisone shot, O'Neal returned April 3 after missing 27 games due to his Achilles; he played only five minutes due to a strained right calf.^[103][109] It was the last regular season game he would play that year.^[110] O'Neal missed the first round of the 2011 playoffs. He insisted on more cortisone shots and returned in the second round, but he was limited to 12 minutes in two games as the Heat eliminated the Celtics from the playoffs.^[111][112]

On June 1, 2011, O'Neal announced his retirement via social media.^[113][114] On a short tape on Twitter, O’Neal tweeted, “We did it. Nineteen years, baby. I want to thank you very much. That’s why I’m telling you first. I’m about to retire. Love you. Talk to you soon.” On June 3, 2011, O'Neal held a press conference at his home in Orlando to officially announce his retirement.^[115]

National team career

While in college, O'Neal was considered for the Dream Team to fill the college spot, but it eventually went to future teammate Christian Laettner.^[116] His national team career began in the 1994 FIBA World Championship in which he was named MVP of the Tournament. While he led Dream Team II to the gold medal with an 8–0 record, O'Neal averaged 18 points and 8.5 rebounds and recorded two double-doubles. In four games, he scored more than 20 points. Before 2010, he was the last active American player to have a gold from the FIBA World Championships.

He was one of two players (the other being Reggie Miller) from the 1994 roster to be also named to the Dream Team III. Due to more star-power, he rotated with Hakeem Olajuwon and David Robinson and started 3 games. He averaged 9.3 points and 5.3 rebounds with 8 total blocks. Again, a perfect 8–0 record landed him another gold medal at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta. O'Neal was upset that coach Lenny Wilkens played Robinson more minutes in the final game; Wilkens previously explained to O'Neal that it would probably be Robinson's last Olympics.^[117]

After his 1996 experience, he declined to play in international competition. He was angered by being overlooked for the FIBA Americas Championship 1999 squad, saying it was a "lack of respect".^[118] He forwent an opportunity to participate in the 2000 Olympics, explaining that two gold medals were enough.^[119] Shaq also chose not to play in the 2002 FIBA World Championship.^[120] He rejected an offer to play in the 2004 Olympics,^[121] and although he was initially interested in being named for 2006–2008 US preliminary roster,^[122] he eventually declined the invitation.^[123]

Player profile

O'Neal established himself as an overpowering low post presence, putting up career averages of 23.7 points on .582 field goal accuracy, 10.9 rebounds and 2.3 blocks per game.

At 7 ft 1 in (2.16 m), 325 lb (147 kg; 23.2 st)^[124] and U.S. shoe size 23,^[48] he became famous for his physical stature. His physical frame gave him a power advantage over most opponents.

O'Neal's "drop step", (called the "Black Tornado" by O'Neal) in which he posted up a defender, turned around and, using his elbows for leverage, powered past him for a very high-percentage slam dunk, proved an effective offensive weapon. In addition, O'Neal frequently used a right-handed jump hook shot to score near the basket. The ability to dunk contributed to his career field goal accuracy of .582, second only to Artis Gilmore as the highest field goal percentage of all time.^[125] He led the NBA in field goal percentage 10 times, breaking Wilt Chamberlain's record of nine.^[48]

Opposing teams often used up many fouls on O'Neal, reducing the playing time of their own big men. O'Neal's imposing physical presence inside the paint caused dramatic changes in many teams' offensive and defensive strategies.^[126]

O'Neal's primary weakness was his free throw shooting, with a career average of 52.7%. He once missed all 11 of his free throw attempts in a game against the Seattle SuperSonics on December 8, 2000, a record.^[127] O'Neal believes his free throw woes were a mental issue, as he often shot 80 percent in practice.^[128] In hope of exploiting O'Neal's poor foul shooting, opponents often committed intentional fouls against him, a tactic known as "Hack-a-Shaq". O'Neal was the third-ranked player all-time in free throws taken,^[129] having attempted 11,252 free-throws in 1,207 games up to and including the 2010–11 season. On December 25, 2008, O'Neal missed his 5,000th free throw, becoming the second player in NBA history to do so, along with Chamberlain.^[130]

O'Neal only made one three point shot during his entire career. He made the shot during the 1995–96 NBA season with the Orlando Magic. His career three point shot record is 1 for 22 (a 4.5% career percentage).

On his own half of the hardwood, O'Neal was a capable defender, named three times to the All-NBA Second Defensive Team. His presence intimidated opposing players shooting near the basket, and he averaged 2.3 blocked shots per game over the course of his career.^[131]

Phil Jackson believed O'Neal underachieved in his career, saying he "could and should have been the MVP player for 10 consecutive seasons."^[132] The Lakers retired his No. 34 jersey on April 2, 2013.^[133]

Media personality

O'Neal called himself "The Big Aristotle" and "Hobo Master" for his composure and insights during interviews. Journalists and others gave O'Neal several nicknames including "Shaq", "The Diesel", "Shaq Fu", "The Big Daddy", "Superman", "The Big Agave", "The Big Cactus", "The Big Shaqtus", "The Big Galactus", "Wilt Chamberneezy", "The Big Baryshnikov", "The Real Deal", "The Big Shamrock", "The Big Leprechaun", "Shaqovic",^[134][135] and "The Big Conductor".^[136] Although he was a favorite interviewee of the press, O'Neal was sensitive and often went weeks without speaking.^[137] When he did not want to speak with the press, he employed an interview technique whereby, sitting in front of his cubicle, he would murmur in his low-pitched voice.^[137][138]

During the 2000 Screen Actors Guild strike, O'Neal performed in a commercial for Disney. O'Neal was fined by the union for crossing the picket line.^[139][140]

O'Neal's humorous and sometimes incendiary comments fueled the Los Angeles Lakers' long-standing rivalry with the Sacramento Kings; O'Neal frequently referred to the Sacramento team as the "Queens."^{[141][142][143]} During the 2002 victory parade, O'Neal declared that Sacramento would never be the capital of California,^[144] after the Lakers beat the Kings in a tough seven game series en route to its third championship with O'Neal.

He also received media flak for mocking Chinese people when interviewed about newcomer center Yao Ming. O'Neal told a reporter, "you tell Yao Ming, ching chong yang, wah, ah so."^[145] O'Neal later said it was locker-room humor and he meant no offense. Yao believed that O'Neal was joking, but he said a lot of Asians wouldn't see the humor.^[146] Yao joked, "Chinese is hard to learn. I had trouble with it when I was little."^[147]

During the 2005 NBA playoffs, O'Neal compared his poor play to Erick Dampier,^[148] a Dallas Mavericks center who had failed to score a single point in one of their recent games. The quip inspired countless citations and references by announcers during those playoffs, though Dampier himself offered little response to the insult. The two would meet in the 2006 NBA Finals.^[149]

O'Neal was very vocal with the media, often making jabs at former Laker teammate Kobe Bryant. In the summer of 2005, when asked about Kobe, he responded, "I'm sorry, who?" and continued to pretend that he did not know who Kobe was until well into the 2005–06 season.^[150]

O'Neal also appeared on television on Saturday Night Live and in 2007 hosted Shaq's Big Challenge, a reality show on ABC in which he challenged Florida kids to lose weight and stay in shape.

When the Lakers faced the Heat on January 16, 2006, O'Neal and Kobe Bryant made headlines by engaging in handshakes and hugs before the game, an event that was believed to signify the end of the so-called "Bryant–O'Neal feud" that had festered since the center left Los Angeles. O'Neal was quoted as saying that he accepted the advice of NBA legend Bill Russell to make peace with Bryant.^[151] However, on June 22, 2008, O'Neal freestyled a diss rap about Bryant in a New York club. While rapping, O'Neal blamed Kobe for his divorce from his wife Shaunie and claims to have received a vasectomy, as part of a rhyme. He also taunted Bryant for not being able to win a championship without him. O'Neal led the audience to mockingly chant several times "Kobe, tell me how my ass tastes."^[152] O'Neal justified his act by saying "I was freestyling. That's all. It was all done in fun. Nothing serious whatsoever. That is what MCs do. They freestyle when called upon. I'm totally cool with Kobe. No issue at all."^[153] Although even other exponents of hip hop, such as Snoop Dogg, Nas and Cory Gunz, agreed with O'Neal,^[154] Maricopa County, Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio expressed his intention to relieve O'Neal of his Maricopa County sheriff posse badge, due to "use of a racially derogatory word and other foul language". The racial quote from his song was "it's like a white boy trying to be more nigga than me."^[155]

Off the court

Education

O'Neal left LSU for the NBA after three years. However, he promised his mother he would eventually return to his studies and complete his bachelor's degree. He fulfilled that promise in 2000, earning his bachelor of arts in general studies.^[156] Coach Phil Jackson let O'Neal miss a home game so he could attend graduation. At the ceremony, he told the crowd "now I can go and get a real job". Subsequently, O'Neal earned an MBA online through the University of Phoenix in 2005. In reference to his completion of his MBA degree, he stated: "It's just something to have on my resume for when I go back into reality. Someday I might have to put down a basketball and have a regular 9-to-5 like everybody else."^[157]

Toward the end of his playing career, he began work on an Ed.D. in Human Resource Development at Barry University.^[158][159] His doctoral capstone^[160][161] topic was "The Duality of Humor and Aggression in Leadership Styles".^[158][162] O'Neal received his degree in 2012.^[163] O'Neal told a reporter for ABC News that he plans to further his education still by attending law school.^[164]

O'Neal has also studied directing and cinematography with the New York Film Academy's Filmmaking Conservatory.^[165]

Law enforcement

O'Neal maintained a high level of interest in the workings of police departments and became personally involved in law enforcement. O'Neal went through the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Reserve Academy and became a reserve officer with the Los Angeles Port Police. He appeared in a commercial for ESPN in Miami Police garb climbing a tree to rescue LSU's costumed mascot Mike the Tiger.

On March 2, 2005, O'Neal was given an honorary U.S. Deputy Marshal title and named the spokesman for the Safe Surfin' Foundation; he served an honorary role on the task force of the same name, which tracks down sexual predators who target children on the Internet.^[166]

Upon his trade to Miami, O'Neal began training to become a Miami Beach reserve officer. On December 8, 2005, he was sworn in, but elected for a private ceremony to avoid distracting attention from the other officers. He assumed a $1 per year salary in this capacity.^[167] Shortly thereafter, in Miami, O'Neal witnessed a hate crime (assaulting a man while calling out homophobic slurs) and called Miami-Dade police, describing the suspect and helping police, over his cell phone, track the offender.^[167] O'Neal's actions resulted in the arrest of two suspects on charges of aggravated battery, assault, and a hate crime.^[168]

In September 2006, O'Neal took part in a raid on a home in rural Bedford County, Virginia. O'Neal had been made an "honorary deputy" by the local sheriff's department. O'Neal is not qualified as a SWAT officer.^[169]

Music career

Shaquille O'Neal
Genres	Hip hop
Occupation(s)	Rapper
Years active	1993–2001
Labels	Jive, Interscope, A&M, Trauma
Associated acts	Lord Tariq and Peter Gunz, DJ Kayslay

Beginning in 1993 O'Neal began to compose rap music. He released five studio albums and 1 compilation album. Although his rapping abilities were criticized at the outset,^[170][171] one critic credited him with "progressing as a rapper in small steps, not leaps and bounds".^[172] His 1993 debut album, Shaq Diesel, received platinum certification from the RIAA.

O'Neal was featured alongside Michael Jackson as a guest rapper on "2 Bad", a song from Jackson's 1995 album HIStory. O'Neal was also featured in Aaron Carter's 2001 hit single "That's How I Beat Shaq". Shaq also appears on the music video for the release.^[173]

Shaquille O'Neal conducted the Boston Pops Orchestra at the Boston Symphony Hall on December 20, 2010.

Acting

Starting with Blue Chips and Kazaam, O'Neal appeared in movies that were panned by some critics.^[174][175]

O'Neal appeared as himself on an episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm, bedridden after Larry David's character accidentally tripped him while stretching, and in two episodes each of My Wife and Kids and The Parkers. O'Neal appeared in the 311 music video for the hit single "You Wouldn't Believe" in 2001, in P. Diddy's video for "Bad Boys 4 Life", the video for Aaron Carter's "That's How I Beat Shaq," and the video for Owl City's "Vanilla Twilight". O'Neal appeared in the movie CB4 in a small "interviewing" scene. O'Neal played John Henry Irons/Steel in Steel based on the eponymous superhero. O'Neal appeared in a SportsCenter commercial dressed in his Miami police uniform, rescuing Mike the Tiger from a tree. O'Neal was also a character in the movie Blue Chips with Nick Nolte. O'Neal reportedly wanted a role in the film X2 (the second in the X-Men film series), but was ignored by the filmmakers.^[176] O'Neal appeared as Officer Fluzoo in the comedy sequel Grown Ups 2.

He voiced animated versions of himself on several occasions, including in the animated series Static Shock (episode "Static Shaq"), in Johnny Bravo (episode "Back on Shaq"), in Uncle Grandpa (episode "Perfect Kid"), and in The Lego Movie.

Video games

O'Neal was featured on the covers of video games NBA Live 96, NBA 2K6, NBA 2K7, NBA Showtime: NBA on NBC, NBA Hoopz, and NBA Inside Drive 2004.^{[177][178][179][180]} O'Neal appeared in the arcade version of NBA Jam (1993), NBA Jam (2003) and NBA Live 2004 as a current player and as a 1990s All-Star. O'Neal starred in Shaq Fu, a fighting game for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System and Sega Genesis. O'Neal also appeared in Backyard Basketball in 2004, Ready 2 Rumble Boxing: Round 2 as a playable boxer, and as an unlockable character in Delta Force: Black Hawk Down. O'Neal was also an unlockable character in UFC Undisputed 2010.^[181] At CES 2014, O'Neal confirmed to GamerFitnation that there would be a "Shaq Fu 2" being released soon on next-generation consoles.^[182]

Television

O'Neal and his mother, Lucille Harrison, were featured in the documentary film Apple Pie, which aired on ESPN.^[183][184] O'Neal had a 2005 reality series on ESPN, Shaquille,^[185] and hosted a series called Shaq's Big Challenge on ABC.^[186]

O'Neal appeared on NBA Ballers and NBA Ballers: Phenom,^[187] in the 2002 Discovery Channel special Motorcycle Mania 2 requesting an exceptionally large bike to fit his large size famed custom motorcycle builder Jesse James,^[188] in the first Idol Gives Back in 2007,^[189] on an episode of Fear Factor,^[190] and on an episode of MTV's Jackass, where he was lifted off the ground on Wee Man's back.^[191] O'Neal was a wrestling fan and made appearances at many WWE events.^[192]

O'Neal was pranked on the MTV show Punk'd when a crew member accused him of stealing his parking space. After O'Neal and his wife went into a restaurant, Ashton Kutcher's crew members let the air out of O'Neal's tires. O'Neal and the crew member then got into an altercation and after Kutcher told O'Neal he had been Punk'd, O'Neal made an obscene gesture at the camera.^[193][194]

O'Neal starred in a reality show called Shaq Vs. which premiered on August 18, 2009, on ABC.^[195] The show featured O'Neal competing against other athletes at their own sports.^[196]

On the July 27 episode of WWE Raw, O'Neal was the special guest host and put himself as the special ringside enforcer in a match involving Cryme Tyme and the Unified WWE Tag Team Champions Chris Jericho and The Big Show.^[197][198] After the match, O'Neal and Big Show had a confrontation inside the ring which led to O'Neal shoulder blocking The Big Show. He even became a nominee for the Raw Guest Host of the Year during the 2009 Slammy Awards, losing to Bob Barker.^[199]

On July 14, 2011, O'Neal announced that he would join Turner Network Television (TNT) as an analyst on its NBA basketball games, joining Ernie Johnson, Kenny Smith, and Charles Barkley.^[200]

He currently hosts the show Upload with Shaquille O'Neal which airs on TruTV.

In September 2015 whilst promoting sportswear giant Reebok in South Korea, O'Neal joined the cast in the South Korean variety television show Off to School where he went to Seo Incheon High School. The show features various celebrities attending a selected high school as students for three days.^[201] The producer of the show, Kim No Eun said, “We’ve worked hard on our guest list this season, so Chu Sung Hoon will be appearing on a cable channel for the first time. Shaquille O’Neal will be on the show as well. We succeeded in casting him after a lot of effort. O’Neal will be visiting Korea for a promotion and will be visiting the school on the last day. He will have lunch with the students. We’re even preparing a big match between Chu Sung Hoon and Shaquille O’Neal. We’re specially preparing a uniform for Shaquille O’Neal.”^{[202][203][204]}

Advertising

Shaq has made numerous appearances in television commercials, including several Pepsi commercials, such as one from 1995 which parodied shows like I Love Lucy (the "Job Switching" episode), Bonanza, and Woody Woodpecker; various 1990s Reebok commercials; Nestlé Crunch commercials; Gold Bond products; and IcyHot commercials.

Mixed martial arts

O'Neal began training in mixed martial arts (MMA) in 2000. At Jonathan Burke's Gracie Gym, he trained in boxing, jiu-jitsu, Muay Thai and wrestling. At the gym, he used the nickname Diesel.^[205] O'Neal challenged kickboxer and mixed martial artist Choi Hong-man to a mixed martial arts rules bout in a YouTube video posted on June 17, 2009. Hong-man replied to an email asking him if he would like to fight O'Neal saying "Yes, if there is a chance." Hong-man also responded to a question asking if O'Neal had a chance of winning with a simple "No."^[206] On August 28, 2010 at UFC 118 in Boston, O'Neal reiterated his desire to fight Choi in an interview.^[207]

Business ventures

O'Neal is also an active businessman and investor. He was an active bond investor in the early 1990s but continued to wade into stocks and made investments in various companies such as General Electric, Apple, and PepsiCo. He described what has worked best for him in stock investing was where he felt a personal connection with the company.^[208] He has also been an active real estate entrepreneur. O'Neal was looking to expand his business ventures with real-estate development projects aimed at assisting Orlando home owners facing foreclosure. His plans involved buying the mortgages of those who had fallen into foreclosure and then selling the homes back to them under more affordable terms. He would make a small profit in return, but wanted to make an investment in Orlando and help out homeowners.^[209]

In conjunction with Boraie Development O'Neal has developed two projects in his native Newark, CityPlex12 and One Riverview ^{[210][211][212][213] [214]} and a potential project in Atlantic City.^{[215][216][217]}

O'Neal is on the advisory board for Tout Industries, a social video service startup company based in San Francisco.^[114] He received the position in return for breaking news of his NBA retirement on the service.^[218]

In September 2013, O'Neal became a minority owner of the Sacramento Kings.^[219]

In June 2015, O'Neal invested in technology startup Loyale3 Holdings Inc., a San Francisco brokerage firm whose website and mobile app enables companies to sell a piece of their IPOs directly to small investors who put up as a little as $100 and also allows investors to regularly buy small amounts of shares in already public companies.^[208]

Personal life

O'Neal was raised by a Baptist mother and a Muslim stepfather.^[220] Both Robin Wright in her book Rock the Casbah as well as the Los Angeles Times have identified O'Neal as a Muslim.^{[221][222][223]} However, O'Neal has said, "I'm Muslim, I'm Jewish, I'm Buddhist, I'm everybody 'cause I'm a people person."^[224]

He married Shaunie Nelson on December 26, 2002. The couple have four children (Shareef, Amirah, Shaqir, and Me'arah), and Nelson has one son from a previous relationship (Myles). In 2015, Shareef was seen in high school basketball highlights as a 6-foot-7-inch (2.01 m) or 6-foot-8-inch (2.03 m) freshman, and had been described to have "polar opposite playing style to his father".^[225][226] O'Neal also has a daughter from a previous relationship with his ex-girlfriend Arnetta Yarbourgh (Taheara).^[227] On September 4, 2007, O'Neal filed for divorce from Shaunie in a Miami-Dade Circuit court. Shaunie later said that the couple had gotten back together and that the divorce was withdrawn. However, on November 10, 2009, Shaunie filed an intent to divorce, citing irreconcilable differences.^[228] In summer 2010, O'Neal began dating reality TV star Nikki "Hoopz" Alexander.^[229][230] The couple resided at O'Neal's home in Sudbury, Massachusetts.^[231]

O'Neal is a 2009 inductee of the New Jersey Hall of Fame.^[232] O'Neal became a Freemason in 2011, becoming a member of Widow's Son Lodge No. 28 in Boston.^[233] O'Neal is a Freemason of the Prince Hall appendant body.^{[234][235][236]}

In his mansion in Orlando, Florida, O'Neal built a homemade movie theater with two rows of five retractable chairs, Superman lights, another Superman symbol on the floor, a big screen, another Superman symbol on his blanket, and 5.1 surround sound. O'Neal also created an indoor basketball court.

When Hall of Fame center George Mikan died in June 2005, O'Neal extended an offer to his family to pay all of the funeral expenses, which they accepted.^[237]

O'Neal is a fan of the National Hockey League's New Jersey Devils, who play in his hometown of Newark, and has been seen at several games over the years.^[238] On January 11, 2014 O'Neal performed the ceremonial first puck and drove a Zamboni for a game between the Devils and the Florida Panthers.^[239]

O'Neal endorsed Republican New Jersey governor Chris Christie in his 2013 reelection bid, appearing in a television advertisement. ^[240]

NBA career statistics

Legend
GP	Games played	GS	Games started	MPG	Minutes per game
FG%	Field goal percentage	3P%	3-point field goal percentage	FT%	Free throw percentage
RPG	Rebounds per game	APG	Assists per game	SPG	Steals per game
BPG	Blocks per game	PPG	Points per game	Bold	Career high

†	Denotes seasons in which O'Neal won an NBA championship
	Led the league

Regular season

Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
1992–93	Orlando	81	81	37.9	.562	.000	.592	13.9	1.9	.7	3.5	23.4
1993–94	Orlando	81	81	39.8	.599	.000	.554	13.2	2.4	.9	2.9	29.3
1994–95	Orlando	79	79	37.0	.583	.000	.533	11.4	2.7	.9	2.4	29.3
1995–96	Orlando	54	52	36.0	.573	.500	.487	11.0	2.9	.6	2.1	26.6
1996–97	L.A. Lakers	51	51	38.1	.557	.000	.484	12.5	3.1	.9	2.9	26.2
1997–98	L.A. Lakers	60	57	36.3	.584	.000	.527	11.4	2.4	.7	2.4	28.3
1998–99	L.A. Lakers	49	49	34.8	.576	.000	.540	10.7	2.3	.7	1.7	26.3
1999–00†	L.A. Lakers	79	79	40.0	.574	.000	.524	13.6	3.8	.5	3.0	29.7
2000–01†	L.A. Lakers	74	74	39.5	.572	.000	.513	12.7	3.7	.6	2.8	28.7
2001–02†	L.A. Lakers	67	66	36.1	.579	.000	.555	10.7	3.0	.6	2.0	27.2
2002–03	L.A. Lakers	67	66	37.8	.574	.000	.622	11.1	3.1	.6	2.4	27.5
2003–04	L.A. Lakers	67	67	36.8	.584	.000	.490	11.5	2.9	.5	2.5	21.5
2004–05	Miami	73	73	34.1	.601	.000	.461	10.4	2.7	.5	2.3	22.9
2005–06†	Miami	59	58	30.6	.600	.000	.469	9.2	1.9	.4	1.8	20.0
2006–07	Miami	40	39	28.4	.591	.000	.422	7.4	2.0	.2	1.4	17.3
2007–08	Miami	33	33	28.6	.581	.000	.494	7.8	1.4	.6	1.6	14.2
2007–08	Phoenix	28	28	28.7	.611	.000	.513	10.6	1.7	.5	1.2	12.9
2008–09	Phoenix	75	75	30.0	.609	.000	.595	8.4	1.7	.6	1.4	17.8
2009–10	Cleveland	53	53	23.4	.566	.000	.496	6.7	1.5	.3	1.2	12.0
2010–11	Boston	37	36	20.3	.667	.000	.557	4.8	.7	.4	1.1	9.2
Career		1,207	1,197	34.7	.582	.045	.527	10.9	2.5	.6	2.3	23.7
All-Star		12	9	22.8	.551	.000	.452	8.1	1.4	1.1	1.6	16.8

Playoffs

Year	Team	GP	GS	MPG	FG%	3P%	FT%	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	PPG
1994	Orlando	3	3	42.0	.511	.000	.471	13.3	2.3	.7	3.0	20.7
1995	Orlando	21	21	38.3	.577	.000	.571	11.9	3.3	.9	1.9	25.7
1996	Orlando	12	12	38.3	.606	.000	.393	10.0	4.6	.8	1.3	25.8
1997	L.A. Lakers	9	9	36.2	.514	.000	.610	10.6	3.2	.6	1.9	26.9
1998	L.A. Lakers	13	13	38.5	.612	.000	.503	10.2	2.9	.5	2.6	30.5
1999	L.A. Lakers	8	8	39.4	.510	.000	.466	11.6	2.3	.9	2.9	26.6
2000†	L.A. Lakers	23	23	43.5	.566	.000	.456	15.4	3.1	.6	2.4	30.7
2001†	L.A. Lakers	16	16	42.3	.555	.000	.525	15.4	3.2	.4	2.4	30.4
2002†	L.A. Lakers	19	19	40.8	.529	.000	.649	12.6	2.8	.5	2.5	28.5
2003	L.A. Lakers	12	12	40.1	.535	.000	.621	14.8	3.7	.6	2.8	27.0
2004	L.A. Lakers	22	22	41.7	.593	.000	.429	13.2	2.5	.3	2.8	21.5
2005	Miami	13	13	33.2	.558	.000	.472	7.8	1.9	.4	1.5	19.4
2006†	Miami	23	23	33.0	.612	.000	.374	9.8	1.7	.5	1.5	18.4
2007	Miami	4	4	30.3	.559	.000	.333	8.5	1.3	.3	1.5	18.8
2008	Phoenix	5	5	30.0	.440	.000	.500	9.2	1.0	1.0	2.6	15.2
2010	Cleveland	11	11	22.1	.516	.000	.660	5.5	1.4	.2	1.2	11.5
2011	Boston	2	0	6.0	.500	.000	.000	.0	.5	.5	.0	1.0
Career		216	214	37.5	.563	.000	.504	11.6	2.7	.5	2.1	24.3

Discography

• Shaq Diesel (1993)
• Shaq Fu: Da Return (1994)
• You Can't Stop the Reign (1996)
• Respect (1998)
• Shaquille O'Neal Presents His Superfriends, Vol. 1 (Unreleased)

Filmography

• Blue Chips (1994) as Neon Boudeaux (nominated for Razzie Award for Worst New Star)
• Kazaam (1996) as Kazaam
• Good Burger (1997) as Himself
• Steel (1997) as John Henry Irons / Steel (nominated for Razzie Award for Worst Actor)
• He Got Game (1998) as Himself
• The Wash (2001) as Norman
• Freddy Got Fingered (2001) as Himself
• After the Sunset (2004) as Himself
• Scary Movie 4 (2006) as Himself
• The House Bunny (2008) as Himself
• WWE Raw (2009)
• The Smurfs 2 (2011) as Smooth Smurf (Voice)
• Jack and Jill (2011) as Himself
• Grown Ups 2 (2013) as Officer Fluzoo
• The Lego Movie (2014) as Himself (Voice)
• Blended (2014) as Doug

Television

• Arliss (1996) as Himself (Episode: a man of our times)
• For Your Love (2001) as Himself (Episode: The Model client)
• My Wife and Kids (2001) as Himself (2 Episodes)
• Curb Your Enthusiasm (2001) as Himself (Episode: Shaq)
• The Bernie Mac Show (2003) as Himself (Episode: Eye of the tiger)
• The Parkers (2002) as Himself (2 Episodes, 2002, 2004)
• The Tracy Morgan Show (2004) as Himself (Episode: Career Day)
• Johnny Bravo (2004) as Himself (Episode: Back on Shaq)
• Real Husbands of Hollywood (2013) as Himself (Episode: Retreat for couples)
• Jimmy Kimmel Live! (2013) as Himself (2 Episodes)
• Southland (TV series) (2013) as Detective Earl Dayton (Episode: The Felix Paradox)
• Uncle Grandpa (2014) as Himself (Episode: The Perfect Kid)
• Off to School (2015) as Himself (Episodes: 59-62)

Bibliography

• Shaq Attaq! (1994)
• A Good Reason to Look Up (1998)
• Shaq and the Beanstalk and Other Very Tall Tales (1999)
• Shaq Talks Back (2002)
• Shaq Uncut: My Story (2011)

See also

• List of National Basketball Association career scoring leaders
• List of National Basketball Association career rebounding leaders
• List of National Basketball Association career blocks leaders
• List of National Basketball Association career turnovers leaders
• List of National Basketball Association career free throw scoring leaders
• List of National Basketball Association career minutes played leaders
• List of National Basketball Association career playoff scoring leaders
• List of National Basketball Association career playoff rebounding leaders
• List of National Basketball Association career playoff blocks leaders
• List of National Basketball Association career playoff turnovers leaders
• List of National Basketball Association career playoff free throw scoring leaders
• List of individual National Basketball Association scoring leaders by season
• List of National Basketball Association players with most points in a game
• List of National Basketball Association players with 10 or more blocks in a game
• List of National Basketball Association seasons played leaders
• List of NCAA Division I men's basketball career blocks leaders
• List of NCAA Division I men's basketball season blocks leaders
• List of NCAA Division I men's basketball season rebounding leaders
• List of Freemasons

References

External links

• Media related to Shaquille O'Neal at Wikimedia Commons
• Quotations related to Shaquille O'Neal at Wikiquote

• Career statistics and player information from Basketball-Reference.com
• Shaquille O'Neal at the Internet Movie Database
• Shaquille O'Neal at Louisiana State

Shaquille O'Neal Music Studio albums Shaq Diesel Shaq Fu: Da Return You Can't Stop the Reign Respect Shaquille O'Neal Presents His Superfriends, Vol. 1 Compilation albums The Best of Shaquille O'Neal Singles "(I Know I Got) Skillz" "I'm Outstanding" "Shoot Pass Slam" "Biological Didn't Bother" "No Hook" "You Can't Stop the Reign" "Strait Playin'" "Men of Steel" "The Way It's Goin' Down" Films Blue Chips Kazaam Steel TV Shaquille Shaq's Big Challenge Shaq Vs. Shaqtin' a Fool Upload with Shaquille O'Neal Other Discography Hack-a-Shaq Shaq Fu Shaq–Kobe feud

Links to related articles United States squad – 1994 FIBA World Championship – Gold medal 4 Dumars 5 Price 6 Coleman 7 Kemp 8 Smith 9 Majerle 10 Miller 11 K. Johnson 12 Wilkins 13 O'Neal (MVP) 14 Mourning 15 L. Johnson Coach: Nelson FIBA Basketball World Cup Most Valuable Player Award 1950: Furlong 1954: Minter 1959: Pasos 1963: Marques 1967: Daneu 1970: Belov 1974: Kićanović 1978: Dalipagić 1982: Frazer 1986: Petrović 1990: Kukoč 1994: O'Neal 1998: Bodiroga 2002: Nowitzki 2006: Gasol 2010: Durant 2014: Irving United States squad – 1996 Summer Olympics – Gold medal 4 Barkley 5 Hill 6 Hardaway 7 Robinson 8 Pippen 9 Richmond 10 Miller 11 Malone 12 Stockton 13 O'Neal 14 Payton 15 Olajuwon Coach: Wilkens USA Basketball Male Athlete of the Year 1980: Thomas 1981: Boyle 1982: Rivers 1983: Jordan 1984: Jordan & Perkins 1985: Person 1986: Robinson 1987: Manning 1988: Majerle 1989: Johnson 1990: Mourning 1991: Laettner 1992: U.S. Olympic team 1993: Finley 1994: O'Neal 1995: Allen 1996: Pippen 1997: Boykins 1998: Brand 1999: Payton 2000: Mourning 2001: Duhon 2002: Miller 2003: Duncan 2004: May & Paul 2005: Williams 2006: Anthony 2007: Kidd 2008: U.S. Olympic team 2009: McAdoo 2010: Durant 2011: Parker 2012: James 2013: Gordon 2014: Irving 1992 NBA draft First round Shaquille O'Neal Alonzo Mourning Christian Laettner Jim Jackson LaPhonso Ellis Tom Gugliotta Walt Williams Todd Day Clarence Weatherspoon Adam Keefe Robert Horry Harold Miner Bryant Stith Malik Sealy Anthony Peeler Randy Woods Doug Christie Tracy Murray Don MacLean Hubert Davis Jon Barry Oliver Miller Lee Mayberry Latrell Sprewell Elmore Spencer Dave Johnson Byron Houston Second round Marlon Maxey P. J. Brown Sean Rooks Reggie Smith Brent Price Corey Williams Chris Smith Tony Bennett Duane Cooper Isaiah Morris Elmer Bennett Litterial Green Steve Rogers Popeye Jones Matt Geiger Predrag Danilović Henry Williams Chris King Robert Werdann Darren Morningstar Brian Davis Ron Ellis Matt Fish Tim Burroughs Matt Steigenga Curtis Blair Brett Roberts NBA first overall draft picks 1947: McNeely 1948: Tonkovich 1949: Shannon 1950: Share 1951: Melchiorre 1952: Workman 1953: Felix 1954: Selvy 1955: Ricketts 1956: Green 1957: Hundley 1958: Baylor 1959: Boozer 1960: Robertson 1961: Bellamy 1962: McGill 1963: Heyman 1964: Barnes 1965: Hetzel 1966: Russell 1967: Walker 1968: Hayes 1969: Alcindor 1970: Lanier 1971: Carr 1972: L. Martin 1973: Collins 1974: Walton 1975: D. Thompson 1976: Lucas 1977: Benson 1978: M. Thompson 1979: E. Johnson 1980: Carroll 1981: Aguirre 1982: Worthy 1983: Sampson 1984: Olajuwon 1985: Ewing 1986: Daugherty 1987: D. Robinson 1988: Manning 1989: Ellison 1990: Coleman 1991: L. Johnson 1992: O'Neal 1993: Webber 1994: G. Robinson 1995: Smith 1996: Iverson 1997: Duncan 1998: Olowokandi 1999: Brand 2000: K. Martin 2001: Brown 2002: Yao 2003: James 2004: Howard 2005: Bogut 2006: Bargnani 2007: Oden 2008: Rose 2009: Griffin 2010: Wall 2011: Irving 2012: Davis 2013: Bennett 2014: Wiggins 2015: Towns Los Angeles Lakers 1999–2000 NBA Champions 2 Derek Fisher 3 Devean George 4 Ron Harper 5 Robert Horry 8 Kobe Bryant 10 Tyronn Lue 11 John Celestand 16 John Salley 17 Rick Fox 20 Brian Shaw 34 Shaquille O'Neal (Finals MVP) 40 Travis Knight 41 Glen Rice 45 A. C. Green Head coach Phil Jackson Assistant coaches Tex Winter Frank Hamblen Jim Cleamons Bill Bertka Regular season Playoffs Los Angeles Lakers 2000–01 NBA Champions 2 Derek Fisher 3 Devean George 4 Ron Harper 5 Robert Horry 7 Isaiah Rider 8 Kobe Bryant 10 Tyronn Lue 12 Mike Penberthy 14 Slava Medvedenko 17 Rick Fox 20 Brian Shaw 34 Shaquille O'Neal (Finals MVP) 35 Mark Madsen 40 Greg Foster 54 Horace Grant Head coach Phil Jackson Assistant coaches Tex Winter Frank Hamblen Jim Cleamons Regular season Playoffs Los Angeles Lakers 2001–02 NBA Champions 2 Derek Fisher 3 Devean George 5 Robert Horry 6 Jelani McCoy 8 Kobe Bryant 10 Lindsey Hunter 14 Slava Medvedenko 17 Rick Fox 20 Brian Shaw 23 Mitch Richmond 34 Shaquille O'Neal (Finals MVP) 35 Mark Madsen 52 Samaki Walker Head coach Phil Jackson Assistant coaches Tex Winter Frank Hamblen Jim Cleamons Kurt Rambis Regular season Playoffs Miami Heat 2005–06 NBA Champions 1 Dorell Wright 3 Dwyane Wade (Finals MVP) 5 Derek Anderson 8 Antoine Walker 20 Gary Payton 24 Jason Kapono 25 Wayne Simien 30 Earl Barron 32 Shaquille O'Neal 33 Alonzo Mourning 40 Udonis Haslem 42 James Posey 49 Shandon Anderson 51 Michael Doleac 55 Jason Williams Head coach Pat Riley Assistant coaches Erik Spoelstra Bob McAdoo Ron Rothstein Keith Askins Bimbo Coles Regular season Playoffs National Basketball Association's 50 Greatest Players in NBA History Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Nate Archibald Paul Arizin Charles Barkley Rick Barry Elgin Baylor Dave Bing Larry Bird Wilt Chamberlain Bob Cousy Dave Cowens Billy Cunningham Dave DeBusschere Clyde Drexler Julius Erving Patrick Ewing Walt Frazier George Gervin Hal Greer John Havlicek Elvin Hayes Magic Johnson Sam Jones Michael Jordan Jerry Lucas Karl Malone Moses Malone Pete Maravich Kevin McHale George Mikan Earl Monroe Hakeem Olajuwon Shaquille O'Neal Robert Parish Bob Pettit Scottie Pippen Willis Reed Oscar Robertson David Robinson Bill Russell Dolph Schayes Bill Sharman John Stockton Isiah Thomas Nate Thurmond Wes Unseld Bill Walton Jerry West Lenny Wilkens James Worthy Bill Russell NBA Finals Most Valuable Player Award 1969: West 1970: Reed 1971: Alcindor  1972: Chamberlain 1973: Reed 1974: Havlicek 1975: Barry 1976: White 1977: Walton 1978: Unseld 1979: D. Johnson 1980: E. Johnson 1981: Maxwell 1982: E. Johnson 1983: Malone 1984: Bird 1985: Abdul-Jabbar 1986: Bird 1987: E. Johnson 1988: Worthy 1989: Dumars 1990: Thomas 1991: Jordan 1992: Jordan 1993: Jordan 1994: Olajuwon 1995: Olajuwon 1996: Jordan 1997: Jordan 1998: Jordan 1999: Duncan 2000: O'Neal 2001: O'Neal 2002: O'Neal 2003: Duncan 2004: Billups 2005: Duncan 2006: Wade 2007: Parker 2008: Pierce 2009: Bryant 2010: Bryant 2011: Nowitzki 2012: James 2013: James 2014: Leonard 2015: Iguodala NBA Most Valuable Player Award 1956: Pettit 1957: Cousy 1958: Russell 1959: Pettit 1960: Chamberlain 1961: Russell 1962: Russell 1963: Russell 1964: Robertson 1965: Russell 1966: Chamberlain 1967: Chamberlain 1968: Chamberlain 1969: Unseld 1970: Reed 1971: Alcindor 1972: Abdul-Jabbar 1973: Cowens 1974: Abdul-Jabbar 1975: McAdoo 1976: Abdul-Jabbar 1977: Abdul-Jabbar 1978: Walton 1979: M. Malone 1980: Abdul-Jabbar 1981: Erving 1982: M. Malone 1983: M. Malone 1984: Bird 1985: Bird 1986: Bird 1987: Johnson 1988: Jordan 1989: Johnson 1990: Johnson 1991: Jordan 1992: Jordan 1993: Barkley 1994: Olajuwon 1995: Robinson 1996: Jordan 1997: K. Malone 1998: Jordan 1999: K. Malone 2000: O'Neal 2001: Iverson 2002: Duncan 2003: Duncan 2004: Garnett 2005: Nash 2006: Nash 2007: Nowitzki 2008: Bryant 2009: James 2010: James 2011: Rose 2012: James 2013: James 2014: Durant 2015: Curry NBA Rookie of the Year Award 1953: Meineke 1954: Felix 1955: Pettit 1956: Stokes 1957: Heinsohn 1958: Sauldsberry 1959: Baylor 1960: Chamberlain 1961: Robertson 1962: Bellamy 1963: Dischinger 1964: Lucas 1965: Reed 1966: Barry 1967: Bing 1968: Monroe 1969: Unseld 1970: Alcindor 1971: Cowens & Petrie 1972: Wicks 1973: McAdoo 1974: DiGregorio 1975: Wilkes 1976: Adams 1977: Dantley 1978: Davis 1979: Ford 1980: Bird 1981: Griffith 1982: Williams 1983: Cummings 1984: Sampson 1985: Jordan 1986: Ewing 1987: Person 1988: Jackson 1989: Richmond 1990: Robinson 1991: Coleman 1992: Johnson 1993: O'Neal 1994: Webber 1995: Hill & Kidd 1996: Stoudamire 1997: Iverson 1998: Duncan 1999: Carter 2000: Brand & Francis 2001: Miller 2002: Gasol 2003: Stoudemire 2004: James 2005: Okafor 2006: Paul 2007: Roy 2008: Durant 2009: Rose 2010: Evans 2011: Griffin 2012: Irving 2013: Lillard 2014: Carter-Williams 2015: Wiggins IBM Award 1984: Johnson 1985: Jordan 1986: Barkley 1987: Barkley 1988: Barkley 1989: Jordan 1990: Robinson 1991: Robinson 1992: Rodman 1993: Olajuwon 1994: Robinson 1995: Robinson 1996: Robinson 1997: Hill 1998: K. Malone 1999: Mutombo 2000: O'Neal 2001: O'Neal 2002: Duncan NBA season scoring leaders 1947: Fulks 1948: Zaslofsky 1949: Mikan 1950: Mikan 1951: Mikan 1952: Arizin 1953: Johnston 1954: Johnston 1955: Johnston 1956: Pettit 1957: Arizin 1958: Yardley 1959: Pettit 1960: Chamberlain 1961: Chamberlain 1962: Chamberlain 1963: Chamberlain 1964: Chamberlain 1965: Chamberlain 1966: Chamberlain 1967: Barry 1968: Bing 1969: Hayes 1970: West 1971: Alcindor 1972: Abdul-Jabbar 1973: Archibald 1974: McAdoo 1975: McAdoo 1976: McAdoo 1977: Maravich 1978: Gervin 1979: Gervin 1980: Gervin 1981: Dantley 1982: Gervin 1983: English 1984: Dantley 1985: King 1986: Wilkins 1987: Jordan 1988: Jordan 1989: Jordan 1990: Jordan 1991: Jordan 1992: Jordan 1993: Jordan 1994: Robinson 1995: O'Neal 1996: Jordan 1997: Jordan 1998: Jordan 1999: Iverson 2000: O'Neal 2001: Iverson 2002: Iverson 2003: McGrady 2004: McGrady 2005: Iverson 2006: Bryant 2007: Bryant 2008: James 2009: Wade 2010: Durant 2011: Durant 2012: Durant 2013: Anthony 2014: Durant 2015: Westbrook NBA All-Star Game Most Valuable Player Award 1951: Macauley 1952: Arizin 1953: Mikan 1954: Cousy 1955: Sharman 1956: Pettit 1957: Cousy 1958: Pettit 1959: Baylor & Pettit 1960: Chamberlain 1961: Robertson 1962: Pettit 1963: Russell 1964: Robertson 1965: Lucas 1966: A. Smith 1967: Barry 1968: Greer 1969: Robertson 1970: Reed 1971: Wilkens 1972: West 1973: Cowens 1974: Lanier 1975: Frazier 1976: Bing 1977: Erving 1978: R. Smith 1979: Thompson 1980: Gervin 1981: Archibald 1982: Bird 1983: Erving 1984: Thomas 1985: Sampson 1986: Thomas 1987: Chambers 1988: Jordan 1989: Malone 1990: Johnson 1991: Barkley 1992: Johnson 1993: Stockton & Malone 1994: Pippen 1995: Richmond 1996: Jordan 1997: Rice 1998: Jordan 1999: No game played 2000: O'Neal & Duncan 2001: Iverson 2002: Bryant 2003: Garnett 2004: O'Neal 2005: Iverson 2006: James 2007: Bryant 2008: James 2009: Bryant & O'Neal 2010: Wade 2011: Bryant 2012: Durant 2013: Paul 2014: Irving 2015: Westbrook 2016: Westbrook Associated Press Men's College Basketball Player of the Year 1961: Lucas 1962: Lucas 1963: Heyman 1964: Bradds 1965: Bradley 1966: Russell 1967: Alcindor 1968: Hayes 1969: Alcindor 1970: Maravich 1971: Carr 1972: Walton 1973: Walton 1974: Thompson 1975: Thompson 1976: May 1977: Johnson 1978: Lee 1979: Bird 1980: Aguirre 1981: Sampson 1982: Sampson 1983: Sampson 1984: Jordan 1985: Ewing 1986: Berry 1987: D. Robinson 1988: Hawkins 1989: Elliott 1990: Simmons 1991: O'Neal 1992: Laettner 1993: Cheaney 1994: G. Robinson 1995: Smith 1996: Camby 1997: Duncan 1998: Jamison 1999: Brand 2000: Martin 2001: Battier 2002: Williams 2003: West 2004: Nelson 2005: Bogut 2006: Redick 2007: Durant 2008: Hansbrough 2009: Griffin 2010: Turner 2011: Fredette 2012: Davis 2013: Burke 2014: McDermott 2015: Kaminsky Adolph Rupp Trophy winners 1972: Walton 1973: Walton 1974: Walton 1975: Thompson 1976: May 1977: Johnson 1978: Lee 1979: Bird 1980: Aguirre 1981: Sampson 1982: Sampson 1983: Sampson 1984: Jordan 1985: Ewing 1986: Berry 1987: D. Robinson 1988: Hawkins 1989: Elliott 1990: Simmons 1991: O'Neal 1992: Laettner 1993: Cheaney 1994: G. Robinson 1995: Smith 1996: Camby 1997: Duncan 1998: Jamison 1999: Brand 2000: Martin 2001: Battier 2002: Williams 2003: West 2004: Nelson 2005: Redick 2006: Redick 2007: Durant 2008: Hansbrough 2009: Griffin 2010: Wall 2011: Fredette 2012: Davis 2013: Oladipo 2014: McDermott 2015: Kaminsky UPI College Basketball Player of the Year Award winners 1955: Gola 1956: B. Russell 1957: Forte 1958: Robertson 1959: Robertson 1960: Robertson 1961: Lucas 1962: Lucas 1963: Heyman 1964: Bradds 1965: Bradley 1966: C. Russell 1967: Alcindor 1968: Hayes 1969: Alcindor 1970: Maravich 1971: Carr 1972: Walton 1973: Walton 1974: Walton 1975: Thompson 1976: May 1977: Johnson 1978: Lee 1979: Bird 1980: Aguirre 1981: Sampson 1982: Sampson 1983: Sampson 1984: Jordan 1985: Mullin 1986: Berry 1987: D. Robinson 1988: Hawkins 1989: Ferry 1990: Simmons 1991: O'Neal 1992: Jackson 1993: Cheaney 1994: G. Robinson 1995: Smith 1996: Allen 1991 NCAA Men's Basketball Consensus All-Americans First Team Kenny Anderson Jim Jackson Larry Johnson Shaquille O'Neal Billy Owens Second Team Stacey Augmon Keith Jennings Christian Laettner Eric Murdock Steve Smith 1992 NCAA Men's Basketball Consensus All-Americans First Team Jim Jackson Christian Laettner Harold Miner Alonzo Mourning Shaquille O'Neal Second Team Byron Houston Don MacLean Anthony Peeler Malik Sealy Walt Williams NCAA Division I men's basketball season blocks leaders 1986: Robinson 1987: Robinson 1988: Blake 1989: Mourning 1990: Green 1991: Bradley 1992: O'Neal 1993: Ratliff 1994: Livingston 1995: Closs 1996: Closs 1997: Foyle 1998: J. James 1999: Williams 2000: Johnson 2001: Williams 2002: Myrda 2003: Okafor 2004: Ferguson 2005: Gai 2006: S. James 2007: Gladness 2008: Varnado 2009: Varnado 2010: Whiteside 2011: Mosley 2012: Davis 2013: Obekpa 2014: Bachynski 2015: Mickey NCAA Division I men's basketball season rebounding leaders 1951: Beck 1952: Hannon 1953: Conlin 1954: Quimby 1955: Slack 1956: Holup 1957: Baylor 1958: Ellis 1959: Wright 1960: Wright 1961: Lucas 1962: Lucas 1963: Silas 1964: Pelkington 1965: Kimball 1966: Ware 1967: Cunningham 1968: Walk 1969: Haywood 1970: Gilmore 1971: Gilmore 1972: Washington 1973: Washington 1974: Barnes 1975: Irving 1976: Pellom 1977: Mosley 1978: K. Williams 1979: Davis 1980: Smith 1981: Watson 1982: Thompson 1983: McDaniel 1984: Olajuwon 1985: McDaniel 1986: Robinson 1987: Lane 1988: Miller 1989: Gathers 1990: Bonner 1991: O'Neal 1992: Jones 1993: Kidd 1994: Lambert 1995: Thomas 1996: Mann 1997: Duncan 1998: Perryman 1999: McGinnis 2000: Phillip 2001: Marcus 2002: Bishop 2003: Hunter 2004: Millsap 2005: Millsap 2006: Millsap 2007: Jones-Jennings 2008: Beasley 2009: Griffin 2010: Parakhouski 2011: Faried 2012: Anosike 2013: Anosike 2014: A. Williams 2015: A. Williams Southeastern Conference Men's Basketball Player of the Year 1965: Lee  1966: Lee & Riley  1967: Widby  1968: Maravich  1969: Maravich  1970: Maravich  1971: Neumann  1972: Edwards & Parker  1973: Grevey & Hudson  1974: van Breda Kolff  1975: Grevey & B. King  1976: B. King  1977: Grunfeld & B. King  1978: R. King  1979: R. King  1980: Macy  1981: Wilkins  1982: Ellis  1983: Ellis & Malone  1984: Barkley  1985: Walker  1986: Walker  1987: McKey & White  1988: Perdue  1989: Jackson  1990: Jackson  1991: O'Neal  1992: O'Neal  1993: Mashburn & McCaffrey  1994: Williamson  1995: Williamson  1996: Delk  1997: Mercer  1998: Sesay  1999: Porter  2000: Langhi & Swift  2001: Prince  2002: Dudley  2003: Bogans & Slay  2004: Roberts  2005: Bass  2006: G. Davis  2007: Byars & Lofton  2008: Foster  2009: Thornton  2010: Wall  2011: Parsons 2012: A. Davis 2013: Caldwell-Pope 2014: Wilbekin 2015: Portis Southeastern Conference Athlete of the Year Male Athlete of the Year 1976: Harvey Glance 1977: Larry Seivers 1978: Jack Givens 1979: Reggie King 1980: Kyle Macy 1981: Rowdy Gaines 1982: Buck Belue 1983: Herschel Walker 1984: Terry Hoage 1985: Will Clark 1986: Bo Jackson 1987: Cornelius Bennett 1988: Will Perdue 1989: Derrick Thomas 1990: Alec Kessler 1991: Shaquille O'Neal 1992: Shaquille O'Neal 1993: Jamal Mashburn 1994: Corliss Williamson 1995: Todd Helton 1996: Danny Wuerffel 1997: Danny Wuerffel 1998: Peyton Manning 1999: Tim Couch 2000: Kip Bouknight 2001: Matias Boeker 2002: Walter Davis 2003: Alistair Cragg 2004: Alistair Cragg 2005: Ryan Lochte 2006: Xavier Carter 2007: David Price 2008: Tim Tebow 2009: Tim Tebow 2010: Mark Ingram, Jr. 2011: John-Patrick Smith 2012: Anthony Davis 2013: Johnny Manziel 2014: A. J. Reed 2015: Andrew Benintendi Female Athlete of the Year 1984: Tracy Caulkins 1985: Penney Hauschild 1986: Jennifer Gillom 1987: Lillie Leatherwood 1988: Dara Torres 1989: Bridgette Gordon 1990: Dee Foster 1991: Daedra Charles 1992: Vicki Goetze 1993: Nicole Haislett 1994: Nicole Haislett 1995: Jenny Hansen 1996: Saudia Roundtree 1997: Trinity Johnson 1998: Chamique Holdsclaw 1999: Chamique Holdsclaw 2000: Kristy Kowal 2001: Amy Yoder Begley 2002: Andree Pickens 2003: LaToya Thomas 2004: Jeana Rice 2005: Kirsty Coventry 2006: Seimone Augustus 2007: Monica Abbott 2008: Candace Parker 2009: Courtney Kupets 2010: Susan Jackson 2011: Kayla Hoffman 2012: Brooke Pancake 2013: Allison Schmitt 2014: Hannah Rogers 2015: Lauren Haeger Los Angeles Lakers Formerly the Minneapolis Lakers (1947–1960) Founded in 1947 Based in Los Angeles, California Franchise Franchise Team history All-time roster Draft history Seasons Records Head coaches Current season Arenas Minneapolis Auditorium Minneapolis Armory Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena The Forum Staples Center D-League affiliate Los Angeles D-Fenders Administration Jeanie, Jim, and Johnny Buss (majority owners) Anschutz Entertainment Group (minority owner) Edward P. 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Schröder (Germany) / Pau & Marc Gasol (Spain) NBA Live series Games 95 96 97 98 99 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 06 07 08 09 10 14 15 16 NBA Playoffs series Lakers vs. Celtics Bulls vs. Lakers Bulls vs. Blazers Cover athletes 95: shot of 1994 NBA Finals 96: O'Neal (PS1 version only) or shot of 1995 NBA Finals 97: Richmond 98: Hardaway 99: Walker 2000: Duncan 2001: Garnett 2002: Francis 2003: Kidd 2004: Carter 2005: Anthony 06: Wade 07: McGrady 08: Arenas 09: Parker 10: Howard Elite 11: Durant 14: Irving 15: Lillard 16: Westbrook Related games Team USA Basketball NBA Showdown NBA Elite 11 NBA Live 13 (Cancelled) McDonald's All-American Game – Boys' MVPs 1979: Daye 1980: Cross 1981: Branch & Sherrod 1982: Winters 1983: Bennett 1984: Williams 1985: Lambiotte 1986: Reid 1987: Macon 1988: Mourning & Owens 1989: Hurley & O'Neal 1990: Bradley 1991: Webber & Brunson 1992: Harrington 1993: Vaughn & Stackhouse 1994: López 1995: Garnett 1996: Holloway 1997: Gregory 1998: R. Curry 1999: Bender 2000: Randolph 2001: E. Curry 2002: Redick 2003: James 2004: Howard & Smith 2005: McRoberts 2006: Budinger & Durant 2007: Beasley 2008: Evans 2009: Favors 2010: Barnes & Sullinger 2011: Gilchrist & McAdoo 2012: Muhammad 2013: Gordon 2014: Jackson & Okafor 2015: Diallo NBA on TNT Related programs Inside the NBA Shaqtin' a Fool NBA on TBS NBA All-Star Weekend NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship Related articles Ratings NBA TV NBA 07 Commentators Play-by-play Marv Albert Brian Anderson Gary Bender Tim Brando Mike Breen Kevin Calabro Skip Caray Matt Devlin Jim Durham Kevin Harlan Jim Huber Verne Lundquist Bob Neal Mel Proctor Dick Stockton Pete van Wieren Color commentators Danny Ainge Rick Barry Hubie Brown P. J. Carlesimo Rex Chapman Doug Collins Chuck Daly Mike Dunleavy, Sr. Mike Fratello Jack Givens Steve Kerr Reggie Miller Doc Rivers John Thompson Jeff Van Gundy Dick Versace Chris Webber Sideline reporters David Aldridge Lewis Johnson Cheryl Miller Rachel Nichols Pam Oliver Craig Sager Marty Snider Tracy Wolfson Studio hosts Vince Cellini Marc Fein Ernie Johnson, Jr. Bob Lorenz Matt Winer Studio analysts Charles Barkley Magic Johnson Kevin McHale Shaquille O'Neal Gary Payton Kenny Smith Reggie Theus NBA Drafts 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 All-Star Game 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 Music "A Light That Never Comes" "Burn It Down" "Come On Get It" "More" "Remember the Name" "We Made It" "Winner" Lore Christmas Day NBA outdoor games Disputed Foul Against Scottie Pippen