?I Don?t Like To Play?: Acknowledging $3.3 Billion Worth Franchise’s Disrespect, Shaquille O?Neal Unwraps Batman-Robin Like Relation With Dwyane Wade

NBA legend Shaquille O?Neal was a leading figure in the locker room throughout his 19-year career in the NBA. During the same, he formed a bond with many of his teammates, often relying on their ability to win games. One of these bonds that Shaq shared was with Miami Heat legend Dwyane Wade. Initially hesitant about the 3x champion’s playing capabilities, Shaq chose to place his confidence in the up-and-comer. Just days after Dwyane Wade got inducted into the Hall of Fame, Shaq recalled the moment that led to one of their most pivotal achievements.

The confidence that Shaq had in Wade pushed the Heat to the franchise’s first-ever NBA championship. It was a performance for the ages by the then-24-year-old Wade.

Shaquille O’Neal talks about sharing a moment with Dwyane Wade during the 2006 NBA Finals

A few days ago, Shaquille O?Neal sat down for an interview with Radio host Adrian Hernandez. During the same, the host drew the 51-year-old?s attention to Dwyane Wade?s recent induction into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. Hernandez then proceeded to draw Shaq?s attention to the momentous 2006 NBA Finals, during which his team, the Miami Heat, faced off against the Dallas Mavericks.

?Everybody knows that I don?t like to play two terrible games in a row,? said Shaq during the interview, placing forward his opinion that the Mavericks were scared of what the player might bring during their next game.

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Claiming to be an ?unselfish guy?, Shaq stated that when he shot ?2 for 10?, he was not going to ?fall for 20?. This might have been in part due to Shaq’s poor free throw shooting skills, which the NBA world was quite aware of and something the Mavericks used to their full advantage, seemingly disrespecting him.

Dwyane Wade, Shaq?s then teammate, was also aware of the same. Shaq recalled approaching the former NBA star and saying, ?Hey man, whatcha gonna do?? Wade, being ever respectful towards the NBA champion, replied back, ?Nah man, forget all that. It?s your time, man.?

Shaq instilled his confidence in his teammate by giving him the ball and saying ?You know what to do with it.?

Carrying Shaq’s vote of confidence, Dwyane Wade dominated and led his team to victory

The $3.3 billion worth team had adopted the infamous ?Hack-a-Shaq? strategy to disrupt Shaq’s scoring ability and undermine his capability. Game 3 of the 2006 NBA Finals was a make or break moment, since the Mavericks were leading the Heat by 2 games. Instead of getting back for the two losses, Batman chose to stand aside and let his Robin, Dwyane Wade, take up the lead for his team. The result paid off well.

The game saw Dwyane Wade going off for an astonishing 42 points and 13 rebounds, helping his team to put a dent in the 13 point deficit during the last six minutes of the game. Wade?s efforts helped the Heat win the game by 2 points and live to fight another day.

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The next three games saw ?Robin? scoring 36, 43 and 36 points, respectively. The Miami Heat secured their first ever championship, leaving a mark in the history books for generations of NBA enthusiasts to marvel upon.