$60 million Nets legend claims Shaquille O’Neal could only be guarded by ‘Father Time’

Shaquille O’Neal had entire gameplans built around him but only Father Time could slow him down, according to this Nets legend.

Shaquille O’Neal grew tired of losing in the Playoffs over and over again. After being bested by an aging Houston Rockets squad in the 1999 postseason, Shaq tore up a bathroom, resulting in Laker General Manager, Jerry West, to come in and explain to Shaq that he had lost in the NBA Finals 7 times before winning a single title.

Well, that very next year, Shaq’s time came. The Los Angeles Lakers would go on to win 3 straight championships with ‘The Big Aristotle’ winning Finals MVP in every single one of those series. His dominance on the biggest stage in the league was showcased to the entire world and it was clear that he was who he claimed he was: M.D.E.

It can be stated that the centers Shaquille O’Neal faced in the Finals weren’t exactly the cream of the crop. The Pacers had Rik Smits, 76ers bolstered a mid 30s Dikembe Mutombo, and the Nets featured Kenyon Martin and Todd MacCulloch.

Kenyon Martin was the most skilled of all the bigs Shaq faced in the Finals but it wasn’t enough to prevent a sweep of the series.

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Kenyon Martin on what could stop Shaquille O’Neal.

Kenyon Martin is one of the more underrated players of the early to mid 2000s. His motor was on par with Kevin Garnett’s and was the anchor for Jason Kidd’s New Jersey Nets for several years, even earning himself an All-Star appearance in 2004. As of today, his net worth stands at $60 million according to Celebrity Net Worth.

While talking about that Finals series between the New Jersey Nets and the Los Angeles Lakers in 2002, K-Mart spared no praise for the 4x champ.

“It was f**king Shaq’s team. Any team Shaq was on; I don’t care who else was on it. Because you had to gameplan around Shaquille O’Neal. Like I said, ain’t nobody ever guarded Shaq. Father time is the only one who guarded Shaq,” said Martin.

The purple and gold would go on to sweep the Nets that series in what would be O’Neal’s final championship with the Lakers. The Nets would go on to reach the NBA Finals the next year, losing once again, but this time to the team that beat the Lakers, the San Antonio Spurs.

Also read: Lakers Head Coach Darvin Ham spells out what cost Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal the 2004 NBA Championship