When LeBron James comes to your team, your chances at a championship ring increase exponentially. The Los Angeles Lakers, Cleveland Cavaliers, and Miami Heat can all attest to that. But one Heat veteran admitted that he jumped shift shortly after “The Decision”.

Jermaine O'Neal had a stellar NBA career, making multiple All-Star teams and playing for nearly two decades. Although he was past his prime with the Heat, he was still productive in the 2009-10 season pre-LeBron. He had averages of 13.6 points and 6.9 rebounds as a full-time starter alongside Dwayne Wade. But he chose not to re-sign with Miami even as Chris Bosh and King James were already set to come to town.

In a recent appearance on the Knuckleheads podcast with Quentin Richardson and Darius Miles, the two-year Heat veteran revealed the turning point that led to him foregoing another season in Miami – Oreos.

“I’m gonna go start with Miami,” he said. “Now, they wanted me to re-sign. I knew that Bron (LeBron James) and them was coming. I knew Bron was coming. And this is the realest thing I could tell y’all. You know they got that eight percent body fat, right? For a big guy, that’s heavy lifting.

“I remember going into the pantry at night, looking at the Oreos, the Oreos looking at me, right? And I could — bruh, I am in a full battle, daily, on what I ate. And I was like, ‘Bruh, I’m 30-plus years old. I can’t go through this.’”

The Miami Heat are notoriously strict when it comes to player fitness and conditioning. At an advanced stage on his career entering Year 15, he just didn't want to go through that grind again.

“So I was like, ‘Bruh, I’m too old to be having a debate whether I want to have an Oreo or not.’ Right? I can’t do that s—. So That’s why I left Miami.”

Jermaine O'Neal would go on to sign with the Boston Celtics and player four more seasons in the NBA. LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and the Miami Heat would go on to make the next four NBA Finals and win two titles during those campaigns.