When a rookie Shaquille O’Neal first came across his idol Patrick Ewing, he was roughed up by the gritty Center. Ewing was envious of seeing a rookie grab all the limelight. He couldn’t fathom a first-year player gaining that much attention. When The Big Aristotle was leading the voting for the 1993 All-Star game, his fury knew no bounds.
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During a November 21, 1992 match-up between the Orlando Magic and the New York Knicks, Shaq fu and Hoya Destroya came face-to-face for the first time. Upon seeing his role model, 20-year-old Shaq became excited to shake hands with him. Instead of shaking hands with the superstar rookie, the 31-year-old All-Star hit him on the knuckles and talked trash. In his 2011 book Shaq Uncut: My Story, Shaquille O’Neal broke down his difficult ordeal.
“I[Shaq] was a rookie with the Orlando Magic the first time I ever met Patrick[Ewing]. We were playing at Madison Square Garden, and my plan was to shake his hand and say, “Hello, Mr. Ewing,” but before I got the chance he punked me. I went to shake his hand, and he wouldn’t. So I went to put my fist out and he hit me real hard on my knuckles. Then he said, “I’m going to bust your ass, rookie,” revealed the 4x NBA Champion.
Upon the game’s end, Shaq had the better statistics. He compiled 18 points, 17 rebounds, and 3 blocks. Meanwhile, Ewing had 15 points, 9 rebounds, and 3 blocks. However, Ewing and the Knicks won 92-77, thanks to Charles Smith’s 26 points and 10 rebounds performance. But as the season progressed, the Knicks Center only grew more unsettled. He was insecure when Shaq was leading the All-Star voting as a rookie in 1993.
“I led the All-Star Game in votes my first year in the NBA, and after that happened Ewing told some guys no rookie should ever be allowed to start in the game,” added Shaq.
It was unfortunate for Shaq to be rejected so harshly by his own idol. However, after being ‘punked’ the big man came right back, and showed Ewing that he wasn’t just any rookie and that all the hype was completely justified. As his career went on, he would even supersede Ewing as a player and even won four championships to the Knicks legend’s none. Despite that fact though, ‘the Diesel’ continued to defend the 11x All-Star.
Shaquille O’Neal has immense respect for Patrick Ewing
O’Neal and Ewing clashed 26 times, with Shaq winning in 15 of those battles. In those games, the former Magic Center also had better stats, tallying 28.7 points, 12.0 rebounds, 2.6 assists, and 3.1 blocks per game. Comparatively, Ewing tallied 21.4 points, 10.8 rebounds, 1.8 assists, and 2.0 blocks a game. In Ewing’s defense, many of these games came at the tail-end of Ewing’s career while Shaq continued to be in his prime.
At any rate, even after a rough rookie encounter and facing Ewing’s fury thereafter, the former Magic Center continues to back his idol. During a Game Time segment, he cried when he saw Patrick Ewing on the screen.
When asked why he was crying, ‘Shaq fu’ touched upon how the former Knicks Center deserves respect. He expressed, “Pat (Ewing) was a great player, great competitor, did a lot, and I’m putting him as one of the five top centers.”
The fact that O’Neal would shed tears for Ewing by just seeing him on screen shows how much respect he continues to have for his former idol to this day. While Ewing may not be his idol any longer, perhaps they are close friends now, and O’Neal can tell him directly, just how much he has admired him for a long time.
