Shaquille O’Neal’s Repeated 8 Word Message Nearly Led to Violent Altercation With Legendary Lakers Coach

Although Shaquille O’Neal spent the entirety of his career in various teams, his best time undoubtedly came with the Los Angeles Lakers. Forming a duo with Kobe Bryant, Shaq and the Lakers dominated the entire league.

However, not everything was well between him and the franchise. Although he quickly became one of the best players on the roster, Shaq’s attitude made it a problem for everyone. He even had a reported fallout with NBA legend Kobe Bryant regarding his seriousness issues.

Interestingly enough, an eminent ESPN journalist revealed how Shaq made his coach angry. Legendary Lakers coach Pat Riley almost had a fight with Shaq regarding his attitude while Shaq was in the Miami Heat.

The report read, “There were the numerous times he drove Pat Riley crazy with that ‘I can turn it on when it matters’ attitude, one that left Shaq and Riley nearly coming to blows during one intense practice session.“

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This just goes on to show how Shaq’s attitude became a problem for whichever franchise he went to. While he had some of his best performances in the Lakers, he was traded to the Miami Heat for his attitude and dipping performances.

Shaquille O’Neal caused problems for Kobe Bryant

Coach Pat Riley is not the only person who had a problem with Shaquille O’Neal and his attitude. Shaq and Kobe Bryant had an infamous beef that caused headlines all around the world.

Although Kobe and O’Neal dominated their opponents on the court, Bryant felt Shaq was not serious. It all went south during the 2000-01 season when O’Neal reported to training camp completely out of shape.

The beef between Bryant and Shaq was a known fact for everyone by the 2003-04 season. Bryant had warned Phil Jackson that he wouldn’t hold back in case Shaq starts a media war, which he did.

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Despite the absence of Kobe Bryant during a training camp, O’Neal said, “The full team is here.” This eventually led to Shaq joining the Miami Heat after winning 3 titles with the Los Angeles Lakers and forming one of the best duos ever.