Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant have had a rocky relationship as teammates in their Los Angeles Lakers days. After O’Neal was traded to the Miami Heat in 2004, the two’s enmity never wavered. It even intensified with the media always having a field day documenting the many barbs and sideswipes each player had for the other.
Those are in the past now, though. Both players are now retired and have patched things up. Bryant was even present when the Lakers unveiled O’Neal’s massive bronze statue outside of Staples Center last March. These days, each man has nothing but respect for one another.
In a YouTube video published by the Oprah Winfrey Network, O’Neal revealed at what point in his career did he learn that Bryant, despite all the animosity that was brewing between them, still respected him.
That moment, as O’Neal recalled, happened in the closing seconds of Game 7 of the 2000 NBA Western Conference Finals against the Portland Trail Blazers, when Bryant made an alley-oop pass to the Lakers big man that put the game away and virtually sealed the Los Angeles’ come-from-behind victory.
Before the video ended, O’Neal had one parting take that explained how, despite their dislike for each other, they managed to win three NBA rings together.
“When you got two alpha males going at it, you’re not always going to get along. The key word, the key component when you’re on a team, when you’re in a relationship, when you have business partners, one word: respect.”
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