“Here’s $1,000 times 41 home games. I’m a grown man, and that’s just not going to happen.” Shaquille O’Neal rejecting Pat Riley’s curfew was one of the first and rare instances of someone challenging the Miami Heat President’s ways. As revealed by Shaq, he even managed to make Riley change his ways of running the team in some other aspects too. But could Big Diesel have won one more ring had he managed to get things his way sooner? Authenticating this claim by Big Diesel, in a way, was Antonio Walker, Shaq’s ex-teammate from the Heat.

Appearing on Run It, Walker revealed that Shaq was at the center of team bonding—by throwing parties in almost every city they visited. “We probably missed. I’m gonna say Utah, Indiana, maybe. There was only two cities that we didn’t have something planned,” Walker recalled. That’s right, the Heat’s 2006 championship run wasn’t just about basketball—it was a full-on tour of good times.

And even if Riley had some objections with late night outs, he could hardly confront Shaq. Thanks to the fact that Big Diesel didn’t drink. “You had to know that you’re gonna have a great time with him [Shaq], but he not drinking. So when you get up in the morning, you gotta deal with shoot around. Pat ain’t going at Shaq. Cause Shaq don’t smell like alcohol. So Shaq is fine,” Walker explained. In other words, while others nursed hangovers, Shaq was fresh and ready to go.

And at the end of the day, results speak louder than curfews. “To be honest with you, it brought the team. Camaraderie was so good. And you hate to say that it’s not, like, the best way to do it, but it was a fun way to do it,” Walker admitted. Winning while having fun? Sounds like Shaq’s kind of championship run. And now, this revelation ties directly back to what Shaquille O’Neal recently said on The Big Podcast.

He firmly believes that if Miami had given him more freedom in 2005, they could have won it all. “I truly believe if you gave me that time off, we definitely could have won the championship,” Shaq said. Well, you cannot argue with that considering Walker’s revelation of how the team won in 2006. However, there was more to Miami’s lifestyle that helped the Heat, as per Walker

Antoine Walker reveals Miami’s nightlife gave their team an advantage over their opponents

Speaking on the Club 520 Podcast with Jeff Teague in January, Walker broke down how Miami’s unique mix of nightlife, warm weather, and luxury often threw visiting teams off their game. Walker described the city as an experience unlike any other in the league.

Between the nightlife, the weather, and everything happening around the city, he said it was hard for anyone to stay indoors. Even in January, the city was warm and inviting—almost too inviting for some teams. He explained that opponents would land in Miami, hit the clubs all night, and show up the next day struggling to keep up. As he put it, Heat would take full advantage of their opponents’ hangovers, blowing them out by 20 points.

But Walker didn’t pretend Miami was only a problem for the visiting teams. He admitted that even the Heat players had to fight the temptation to get caught up in the city’s energy. He recalled partying and playing basketball like never before, sometimes needing to remind himself to slow down.

After all, when the sun is shining and the city is alive, staying disciplined is easier said than done. So, it seems the team struck a perfect balance in 2006, finding their way to the championship.