A lot of players come into the league thinking of playing for their favorite team for the entirety of their careers after getting drafted. To spend their entire career with just one team is a dream that a lot of stars have at the beginning of their journey, as did four-time NBA champion Shaquille O’Neal. But the Big Aristotle soon realized the value of loyalty in the NBA, early on in his career. He once got honest about the topic in 2011.
Advertisement
Shaquille O’Neal has extensively talked about loyalty in the NBA when it came to his contract with the Orlando Magic after the 1995-96 season. After getting swept by the 72-10 Bulls in the playoffs despite finishing second in the East, Shaq realized how there was no loyalty in this game. In his 2011 memoir Shaq Uncut, the big man described seeing legends getting traded in front of him.
Patrick Ewing, who spearheaded the New York Knicks for a long time, got traded, as did Dominique Wilkins, who gave his all to the Atlanta Hawks franchise. Shaq even talked about Michael Jordan leaving the Chicago Bulls and how it should never have come to that. His own contract negotiations with the Magic gave the big fella a unique understanding of how NBA teams go about their business when it comes to dealing with franchise players.
“Now my contract is up, and that’s when I learn there is no loyalty in this game. None whatsoever. Zero. You just have to develop a thick skin and accept it. I knew there was no loyalty when I watched Patrick Ewing get traded, and Dominique Wilkins, too. Even Michael Jordan switched teams,” Shaq wrote in Shaq Uncut.
“Ewing made the Knicks. ’Nique made the Hawks. Jordan made the Bulls. I know they were at the end of their careers and they thought it would be best for them to go somewhere else, but it should never have come to that,” he added.
Shaq felt that players who gave their all to their respective franchises should never be traded. It takes a toll on not just the player, but fans as well. O’Neal himself realized that one had to develop a thick skin and learn to move on, in order to survive in the NBA. Probably that may have been a contributing factor to Shaq leaving Orlando for the Los Angeles Lakers.
City of Orlando and the Magic franchise turned on Shaquille O’Neal
Shaquille O’Neal was a star by the time his rookie contract was over with the Orlando Magic. Already having led the team to the their first ever NBA Finals appearance, Shaq had turned the Magic into a real threat and championship contender in the East. Unfortunately, it was the Magic’s front office that, in the end, messed up their chances to sign the 7’1 star back to the team. Not only did they low-ball him with a four-year/$54 million offer, but they also criticized O’Neal’s rebounding and defensive abilities on the floor to downplay his market value.
If that weren’t enough, then a billboard outside of Lucille O’Neal’s office may have been the final nail in the coffin. The billboard read, ‘Is Shaquille O’Neal worth $150 million?’ According to Sportscasting, ‘More than 5,000 people called in, and over 91% said no. [In a Orlando Sentinel poll arranged on the topic]’
Shaquille O’Neal was always sensitive to criticism and the billboard felt like a ‘slap in the face’ to him. Apart from the billboard, a radio station asking listeners to call and provide information regarding Shaq’s baby mama was another factor that led O’Neal to move on from Orlando.
