There will never be another force of nature in the NBA quite like Shaquille O’Neal in his prime. Going against him in practice every day was the toughest physical challenge of my life, but it prepared me for absolutely anything a real game could throw at me.
Beyond his physical gifts, Shaq possessed an incredible basketball IQ and a unique ability to unite a locker room through humor. Here are a few of my favorite memories playing alongside the Diesel.
People forget how nimble Shaq was. At 330 pounds, his footwork in the post was like a ballet dancer. He knew exactly where the double team was coming from before the ball even reached his hands. Defending him was a math problem with no solution. If you played him straight up, he’d drop-step and dunk on you. If you doubled down, he’d whip a skip-pass to Derek Fisher or Robert Horry for an open three.
But the most impressive thing about Shaq was his generosity. He understood the pressure surrounding our team every single day, and he constantly used his massive personality to act as a shield for the younger guys. He took the heat, he took the double-teams, and he delivered rings.
