Shaquille O’Neal Wanted People to Think He “Hates” Orlando Magic and Ex-Teammate Penny Hardaway After Trade to Lakers

Kevin Durant had an unpleasant response from the OKC home crowd when he returned to the Paycom Center as a Golden State Warriors player. ‘The Decision’ from LeBron James to move to the South Beach also had a similar reaction from the Cavaliers’ fans. But before James and Durant, there was Shaquille O’Neal, who was one of the first to experience such a negative energy. 

Shaquille O’Neal spent four seasons with the Orlando Magic and he took them to the NBA Finals in just his 3rd year. He was surrounded by a playoff-caliber team that consisted of Penny Hardaway, Dennis Scott, Horace Grant, and Nick Anderson. Although they were considered title contenders, Shaq quit the run in 1996 to join forces with Kobe Bryant at the Los Angeles Lakers. Well, that pulled a nerve. 

On his return to the Amway Center on February 22, 1998, Shaq received loud boos from the Magic crowd, which he brilliantly used to his advantage. The Big Diesel shared, “What was going through my mind was is I have to market this game to where we hate each other… I want people to watch”. The 1993 ROTY considered it to be a rivalry. He even stopped talking to Nick Anderson and Penny Hardaway for some time to make it dramatic. He added, “When I come back to Orlando, nobody bothered me…Exactly what I wanted”. 

However, the Magic had a different plan. They made use of all the negative energy on Shaq. On every bucket that was scored against the Lakers, the Amway Center erupted. Notably, Shaq couldn’t secure a win in his first game against the Orlando unit. He scored 20 points and 10 rebounds, but the Lakers lost by 2 points (94-96) after Anderson hit a clutch three.

However, in the later years, Shaq justified his move to LA with a historic three-peat that sent him to the Hall of Fame. Well, they say ‘Careful what you wish for’, and Shaq did so! 

Why did Shaquille O’Neal want to leave the Orlando Magic? How did Shaq’s young mentality push him to quit the run? 

As mentioned above, Shaq’s magic had all the potential to make a deep run in the playoffs. However, Magic told a young Shaq that it was not his team, but Penny Hardaway’s. On top of it, the famous franchise used this to deny a deal that Shaq asked for. All of the above reasons triggered the dominant center to leave the team. Even today, fans believe that the Magic could have delivered a championship if Shaq was retained. However, Magic wanted to give Hardaway the bigger deal. 

Read more: Shaquille O’Neal’s Jersey Retirement: Only Regret Revealed by Former Teammate

Shaq said, “At the end of my four years, Penny’s deal was up. He actually sat out, until they paid him. I was a supporter, ‘Hey man, pay the man what he wants.’ So, Penny gets a lot of money. When my deal was up, they didn’t want to give me the money that I wanted and they said it was Penny’s team.” This is where the ego kicked in for Shaq and he opted for free agency. The rest is history! 

Read more: “Ego Kicked in a Little Bit..”: Lakers Legend Shaquille O’Neal Once Admitted Epic Run with Iconic Teammate Started Out of Spite