The retirement of Shaquille O’Neal relates to more than basketball.
It is the end of an era where an athlete reached the top of his profession on multiple occasions. It sees the culmination of a legacy that transcended the borders of sports celebrity by making an impact in music and acting. Not to be forgotten in all of that is an immaculate public persona that lent itself beautifully to pitching commercials and being on television.
Shaquille O’Neal is a name that will dominate basketball history in a similar fashion as Michael Jordan. The two are among the greatest ever in statistical categories such as scoring. They were among the best at their respective positions (Jordan hailed as the best guard ever and Shaq as one of the league’s best centres). They both made millions in endorsements, salary and side ventures.
Shaq might emulate Mike best in his impact on some of the greatest players of his generation. For all Jordan’s personal achievements, he is remembered for his battles with legends like Isiah Thomas, Clyde Drexler and Karl Malone while playing alongside the likes of Scottie Pippen and Dennis Rodman. Shaq meanwhile had to fend off the likes of Hakeem Olajuwon and David Robinson while suiting up with stars such as Kobe Bryant, Dwyane Wade and LeBron James.
O’Neal states that being among the greatest players in history was a goal from childhood.
“My Dad would always tell me, ‘Who’s Bill Russell? Who’s Kareem Abdul-Jabbar? Who’s Wilt Chamberlain,” O’Neal said. “He always believed I would be mentioned in the same sentence with those guys someday. And my mom would just tell me, ‘Make them remember your name. Make sure they remember you.’ Now I hear my name mentioned with all of them.”
Shaq won his last championship alongside Wade with the Miami Heat five years ago. This week the franchise are looking to add another championship by beating the Dallas Mavericks (the same club they defeated in 2006). Game five of that serise is Thursday 9 June.
Even though Wade is on the court trying to win again, his thoughts are on the impact Shaq had on his career.
“We had some great years together,” Wade said. “So I’m humbled and totally honoured to have been a team-mate. But as a fan, just seeing the dominance of what he did will never be forgotten and what he did off the court, always fun-loving.”
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