Shaquille O’Neal was perhaps one of the most menacing players in history. This, however, did not stop Dennis Rodman from picking a fight!
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The Orlando Magic drafted one of the greatest of all time with the first overall pick in 1992. Shaquille O’Neal was a dominant force in the sport of basketball.
The 7’0 center was unstoppable in the paint, averaging 23 points, 11 rebounds, and two blocks per game over 19 seasons.
These stats would allow Shaq to secure four NBA Championships, three Finals MVPs, a regular season MVP, 15 All-Star call-ups, 14 All-NBA call-ups, and a place in the Hall of Fame.
Also Read: Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal came together after Shareef O’Neal got the 2009 All-Star MVP trophy
However, dominance like Shaq’s leads to a lot of animosity amongst players as well. One such player who had an intense rivalry with the Big Aristotle, especially in the 90s was Dennis Rodman.
Dennis Rodman had to be wrestled to the ground by both Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen in order to stop him from picking a fight with Shaquille O’Neal
The 1990s were dominated by one team and one team only, the Chicago Bulls. The team, led by Michael Jordan was truly an unstoppable force and was nigh undefeatable.
In the decade, the team won six rings and the most memorable team was their 1996 squad. The team had MJ, Scottie Pippen, and of course the defensive specialist in Dennis Rodman.
The Worm never backed down from a fight, no matter how big the opponent was. This was certainly the case in the 1996-1997 season when the Bulls faced the Lakers. Rodman got into it with Shaquille O’Neal and needed both Jordan and Pippen to stop him from making a huge mistake.
Safe to say a full-on fight between the likes of Rodman and Shaq would not have ended well. Luckily, two Bulls were there to stop things from escalating.
