Before their fallout, Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant got along quite well with each other. The off-court chemistry between the two meshed nicely with their dominance in the early 2000s, which saw the Lakers running through teams to complete the first three-peat since the Michael Jordan-led Bulls did it back in the 90s. But Shaq had a problem when Kobe decided to pay his idol MJ an homage following their third consecutive NBA Finals win.
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Kobe paid homage to Michael Jordan by wearing a #23 Bulls jersey before Game 4 of the 2002 NBA Finals. The Lakers were 3-0 up against the New Jersey Nets and were on their path to securing their third straight Championship win with a sweep.
In the Finals series, Kobe had rocked various iconic jerseys from the past as he entered the arena. In the first three games, he wore jerseys from the NFL, MLB, and the NHL. Therefore, for Game 4, everyone knew a throwback NBA jersey was on the cards. And it was obviously a Jordan Bulls jersey.
Kobe not only idolized Mike since he was a kid, but literally tried to emulate him in every step of the way. However, Shaq did not like him trying to become the next Jordan. Instead, he wanted him to be just Kobe Bryant.
Therefore, Shaq suggested his “little brother” take off the jersey when he saw Kobe wearing the Bulls’ #23. “You take that jersey off and put your own jersey on,” the Diesel told Kobe.
The Mamba too seemed to agree that it was finally time to create a unique identity and come out of MJ’s shadow. “About time now?” he replied to Shaq.
Shaq recently shared the same clip through his Twitter account as if to highlight his message to fans.
Why did Shaq say this to Kobe after the 3-peat? #nba #lakers #shaq #ko… https://t.co/agruFRcEQw via @YouTube
— SHAQ (@SHAQ) June 13, 2023
The relationship they had until then allowed the Big Aristotle to do so. Both of them unselfishly helped each other and the team in reaching the heights that only two franchises (the Celtics and the Bulls) before them had reached. However, that year onwards, it all went downhill for the duo. They fell into an ugly public feud and started weighing their options in the open market.
It wasn’t just Shaq who was looking for options in 2004
In his recent appearance on Podcast P with Paul George, former Lakers GM Jerry West opened up about how Kobe was also looking for options in 2004. The man who would go on to be a Laker for life was considering Memphis as one of his next possible destinations.
All this was because the relationship between Shaq and Kobe had started souring after the 3-peat, as both of them wanted to be the alpha of the team.
The Lakers decided on siding with the younger talent, who would be the future of the franchise. That resulted in them winning two more championships in the next 12 years with Kobe. Whereas, Shaq could win just one more in his next seven years in the league.
