Shaquille O’Neal and his road to becoming one of the most dominant players in the NBA has been different than most people would think. He worked hard throughout his career to accomplish the goals in his career. However, most of his coaches and mentors understood one major attribute of the Big Aristotle, he had god-gifted talent. His natural ability was so striking that he could turn up his performances in a game on his will. However, not all his coaches grasped the true nature of his talent. In a recent edition The Big podcast, Shaq recalled an incident, as he pulled down his pants to show what happened when coaches couldn’t truly understand the Big Man.

Shaq mentioned how Stan Van Gundy, the Miami Heat coach overplayed him, which led to a horrific injury. In a recent podcast appearance, Shaq pulled his pants down to display the remnants of the injury that happened almost 20 years ago.

Shaquille O’Neal pulls his pants down to show a devastating injury

Shaq has been through a lot throughout his career, as being a 7-foot-tall man comes with its own set of disadvantages. Luckily when Shaq played for the Los Angeles Lakers, coach Phil Jackson was wary of the Big Man’s size. In the recent edition of The Big Podcast, Shaq mentioned how Jackson understood what the Lakers no. 34 genuinely needed, but Van Gundy missed it during his Miami Heat days.

“We had clinched [playoffs] and had about 6 or 7 games. I go to upstairs and be like, listen. Back in my day, when I was winning, you know, the last four, five years, when we clinched they give me that time off,” said Shaq. He further added, ” But they [Miami Heat] don’t want to do that. So we have one meaningless game against Indiana. They always say ‘if you don’t play hard, you get hurt.’ I’m not playing hard, so Jermaine O’Neal’s coming through. I do something I never do, I try to take charge and he kneed me in my thigh.”

Following that Shaq mentioned how he still has the marks from the injury and starts to take his pants off. Initially, co-host Nischelle Turner rolled her eyes, saying “Oh Lord“. But as soon as she looked at the painful bump on Shaq’s thigh, she became concerned. Special guest Josiah Johnson was also hesitant to look at first. However, his eyes widened as he saw the tumor-like inflammation of the skin.

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Turner was confused as to why Shaq didn’t have his injury treated, but the four-time NBA champion explained that he didn’t want to miss any games during the playoffs. According to the Big Man, he took a lot of painkillers to push through the pain to help his team, only to be defeated in the Eastern Conference Finals against the Detroit Pistons.?

Van Gundy’s man management wasn’t exactly what the Heat needed at that moment. Hence, the Miami side subsequently planned to hire a legendary coach of the game, Pat Riley.

Pat Riley’s appointment to the Miami Heat led to Shaq winning his fourth ring

In his latest documentary Shaq, the four-time NBA Finals MVP mentioned how Riley was the first coach who decided to talk about contracts and money with him. The legendary coach convinced the Big Man to accept a lighter contract that helped the Heat to retain their stars. It was a decision that was directly responsible for the franchise’s maiden NBA title in 2006.?

What do you think of Shaq’s painful bump? Let us know in the comments below.

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