The bumbling yet wholesome NBA analyst that Shaquille O’Neal is today has had his fair share of struggles with weight in recent years. However, that is an issue that he has been dealing with for a long time, even back during the most illustrious years of his playing career. Things especially heated up when O’Neal joined the Miami Heat, under the legendary Pat Riley.
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According to Shaq Uncut, the then-dominant center did not agree, or understand Riley’s stringent body fat program and overall workout regime. Using his dominance over 7-time All-Star Alonzo Mourning as evidence, he claimed that body fat did not even mean ‘s**t.’
“I didn’t have time to do anything but work out all day long because Pat was all hung up on this body fat program. He was very serious about it. He expected all the guards to have 6 percent body fat, the forwards to have 7 to 8 percent body fat, and the centers to have 10 percent body fat. It made no sense to me,” O’Neal said, claiming that he had, on his own accord, been taking good care of his body until then in his career.
He went on to talk about him already being a serial winner, the evidence of which was the three NBA rings he boasted of. He also believed that the body fat percentage rule was unnecessary because of how easily he dominated his teammate, Alonzo Mourning. O’Neal claimed that while Mourning looked fitter, it didn’t mean much at all.
“I mean, look at Alonzo Mourning. He is a machine. Really. I wouldn’t be surprised if we found out he was a robot. The guy was always in amazing shape. He always looked ten times better than me, but I used to kill him on the court, which tells you that body fat don’t mean shit.,” he said.
Of course, while O’Neal was more than capable of dominating anyone in the NBA, Riley probably wanted him to work hard, knowing what kind of beast he could turn into, if only he listened. However, that never really happened at any point in Shaq’s career. “It’s all about what’s in your heart and in your mind. Are you tough enough? Do you want it enough? You don’t need to be at 10 percent body fat for that.” he explained, further proving exactly how fearsome a player he could have been, had he listened.
To this day, O’Neal is considered to be the most dominant player of all time. Despite the NBA legend never quite maintaining his health and diet, his talent was so immense that he eventually ended his career with four NBA championships. However, who knows how far he could have gone had he maximized his talent in the NBA.
Shaquille O’Neal and Pat Riley had a healthy exchange of ideas at the Miami Heat
Shaquille O’Neal had issues with some aspects of the Heat culture, especially those that resulted in him being required to be in the gym. O’Neal even believed that Pat Riley had a problem with him specifically, something Riley has denied vehemently.
Riley allegedly thought of Shaq as nothing more than a massive challenge for him as a coach, if O’Neal’s words are to be believed.
“When he traded me, Pat denied we were having any problems. He told the media, “I loved Shaq when I got him and I love him today.” He didn’t mean it. He hated the way I called him out. He didn’t like to be challenged. I’m sure he thought I was trying to destroy the culture he created. He was probably right. I thought his “culture” needed some tweaking,” he said.
While both men had their disagreements, it is clear that they were only looking to help the Heat be more successful. However, things did eventually pay off. Despite the evident tension between the two, the Miami Heat won their first-ever championship in 2006, which was O’Neal’s fourth, the Final one of his career.
