Shaquille O'Neal‘s induction to the Hall of Fame has brought plenty of conversation about his career, including from former Los Angeles Lakers teammate, Robert Horry.
The seven-time NBA champion advised fans not to confuse the Shaq that played for the Heat to the one that played alongside him with the Lakers.
“He kind of just wasn't the Shaq that I watched for so many years and played with for so many years,” Horry told the Orange County Register. “If you look at him, as soon as he left the Lakers, he gained more weight, he wasn't that dominant force, he wasn't as agile as he used to be. There were a lot of things that were going on that wasn't Shaq-like.”
The numbers back “Big Shot Bob” all the way, as O'Neal was 15 pounds heavier with the Heat and his rebounding and shot-blocking stats started to dip consistently after his first year in Miami.
The Hall of Fame center's offensive numbers were also not the same, as his field goal attempts, free-throw attempts, and offensive touches also decayed under Pat Riley‘s system.
Horry's observations are spot-on. O'Neal's weight played a huge part on his durability as he played a combined 160 games from 2005 through 2008, an average of 40 games a year.
Despite his fall from complete dominance, Shaquille O'Neal was still a force to be reckoned with and managed to win his fourth and only ring without Kobe Bryant in 2006.
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