8 Years After Michael Jordan Crashed His $11,000,000 House, 7 ft Shaquille O?Neal Quenched the Thirst of 3.7 Million LA Residents

Shaquille O’Neal came in as one of the most dominant rookies ever. With averages of 23.4 points, 13.9 rebounds, and 3.5 blocks, he outclassed all expectations. A monumental force in Orlando, Shaq’s team swept Michael Jordan in the playoffs in just his third season. However, that was the ceiling for the team. While Mike and Shaq became friends during his rookie days, Shaq couldn’t achieve Finals success like his buddy. The desire for a title lit a huge fire in his heart. Thankfully, his dreams came to fruition thanks to inaugural Finals MVP Jerry West.

Facilitating Shaq’s move to LA, West became instrumental in LA’s first championship victory since 1988.

Shaquille O’Neal dominates en route to NBA Championship in 2000

The turn of the millennium brought about a return to order. Los Angeles became a champion again, and the fans had a 7FT dominant machine to thank. A run that saw him become universally regarded as the most dominant player in NBA history began with this championship.

And the change began, in 1996. Coming off a disappointing postseason, a move was in order for Shaq. And, the one to convince him to come to LA was none other than Jerry West. His primary pitch? Kobe Bryant.

Touting him as the next big thing, West emphasized Kobe’s potential greatness and lured Shaq to LA. The rest, as they say, is history. After Kobe came into his own, the Lakers took off. Winning three championships in a row, they re-established their dominance.

Kobe was spectacular, but Shaq? He entered the top-10 player of all-time conversations off the back of this run. Since then, Shaq is a megastar. A true icon on and off the court, we know Shaq for his hilarious personality and charitable behavior.

In 2002, Shaq released his second autobiography. Titled Shaq Talks Back, the book was his excuse to fire back at critics but gave an insightful look into the minds of one of the sport’s true greats.

In the book, Shaq told a story of how dominant he was as a rookie, and how close he and MJ had become already.

MJ would come over to Shaq’s house before golfing trips

Shaq spoke about his meteoric rise in the NBA world. While dominant as a rookie, Shaq was paid like a star. On the back of the largest rookie contract in history, Shaq was poised to make $41 million over 7 years.

He was so famous that Jordan would check in with him before golfing trips. While in his $11 million Orlando house, Shaq said, “Michael Jordan had come knocking on my door in Orlando, to see if I was home before he played a round of golf on the course next to my new lakefront home.”

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Shaq mentioned how immediate his rise to stardom was as he detailed his popularity. “ESPN wanted a few minutes of my time. The New York Times wanted a week of interviews. I had met Muhammad Ali.”

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Safe to say, Shaq is an even bigger personality since those days. After inducting Nikola Jokic into the big-man alliance, Shaq remains at the heart of the NBA world.

And, in the hearts of Laker fans, Shaq will always be a favorite.