?Magic Johnson and Kareem, Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen..?: Shaquille O?Neal Pondered Over Rift with Legendary Point Guard That Reshaped His NBA Legacy

Players like NBA legend Shaquille O?Neal don’t come around very often. He was definitely a generational player who could change the fate of an organization by himself, like Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, and a select few others could. And he was destined for exactly that for the Orlando Magic. However, his time with the Magic would be cut short eventually.

After dominating high school, Shaq opted to play for LSU and became one of the best players in the country. After thrashing it in the college scene, O’Neal declared for the NBA draft. The Magic selected him as the first overall pick in the 1992 NBA draft.

While there was a huge expectation of the “Big Diesel”, not many predicted what he did in his rookie season. He averaged 23.4 points, 13.9 rebounds, and 3.5 blocks per game in his first season in the league. And deservedly won the Rookie of the Year award. He was turning the new organization into a legitimate contender in the league. And he had good help from fellow superstar Penny Hardaway.

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Interestingly, the duo acted in the movie “Blue Chips” before the draft and the movie was released in 1994. The Golden State Warriors drafted Hardaway as the third pick in the same year and then traded him to the Magic.

Shaquille O?Neal opens up about Penny Hardaway

The Shaquille O?Neal and Penny Hardaway duo clicked instantly and started winning games. Everyone could see the chemistry the two had on the court. And they had the potential to win it all, together. However, the duo had some internal conflicts and Shaq moved to the Los Angeles Lakers. O’Neal once opened up about it and talked about the chemistry between him and Hardaway.

Shaq said, “I figured out watching all the other greats, you can’t do it by yourself. Magic Johnson and Kareem. Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen. Patrick Ewing and John Starks. So I needed a sidekick. And this guy[Hardaway] was the perfect one because he always look for me. He was the type of player that always like to pass before he liked to shoot. So on the court, we never had a problem.”

“I hate that it ended the way it did,” he added afterwards.

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The five-time champion also talked about the reason why he left the Magic. As it turns out, Orlando offered a huge contract to Hardaway, but they were reluctant to give Shaq the kind of money he wanted. O’Neal admitted that his ego kicked in and so he wanted to test the free agency. He then signed with the Lakers for the biggest contract at the time. And went on to three championships with Kobe Bryant that would change his legacy forever.