Back in the early 2000s, Shaquille O'Neal and the late Kobe Bryant both bannered the Los Angeles Lakers to form one of the most dominant duos in league history. However, it wasn't all pretty for the two players as their time together was filled with feuds and controversies, especially off the court.
O'Neal shared that his ego got in the way of Bryant's but they both knew in themselves that they share a common goal, which is to win a championship.
“I was playing with a younger version of myself. Somebody that had the same mentality. A lot of times guys worry about titles instead of worrying about certain things. We were both about whose team it is, who’s the best player on the Lakers? We had a job to do… [indiscernible] won three championships in a row,” he said via TheCoachesNetwork Podcast.
Now that their playing careers are over, O'Neal remained adamant that he wouldn't change a thing even if he was given a chance to do so.
“If I had to do it all over again, I wouldn’t change anything. People think, ‘oh you didn’t get along’, I know we didn’t get along’ but we respected each other. That’s all you need. When you have respect for each other, nothing else matters… Were we best friends? Nope. Were we best friends on the court? Yup.”
O'Neal and Bryant would occasionally fire back at each other through statements made with the media. Their disagreements primarily stemmed from their similar desires to be the main man of the Lakers, with neither of them willing to give in. Despite their differences, the two players still handled their business on the floor and attained success in the league as teammates.
Their partnership ran from 1996 to 2004 which was highlighted by their three-straight titles from 2000 to 2002. O'Neal then requested a trade to the Miami Heat after his frustrations with the Lakers organization reached a boiling point.
The All-Star big man added another ring to his collection when he won a title with the Heat in 2006. After his stint in South Beach, he then played for the Phoenix Suns, Cleveland Cavaliers, and the Boston Celtics before hanging it up in 2011.
On the other hand, Bryant went on and won two-straight titles without O'Neal in 2009 and 2010. He eventually finished his career donning the Lakers' Purple and Gold which lasted for 20 seasons before he retired in 2016.
The league and its fans can only wonder what the two might have achieved if they stayed as teammates for a longer period of time. However, as O'Neal puts it, he would stand by how things transpired and wouldn't want to change a thing.
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