In just his second NBA season, Shaquille O’Neal was on pace to lead the league in scoring. But there was a 7’1” hurdle in his way. Going into the final night of the regular season, O’Neal held a 33-point advantage over second-placed David Robinson; one that would be erased in historic fashion.
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Robinson and the Spurs had already secured the fourth seed in the West, but on the final night of the regular season, they had different goals in mind. The Admiral’s teammates ensured that he shot the ball every trip down to win the scoring title over O’Neal, but Robinson took it a step further by tallying the fifth-highest scoring game in NBA history with 71 points.
Interestingly, that’s inadvertently what Shaq wanted. You see, the sophomore center had spread a rumor that Robinson had once denied a young Shaq an autograph. It never happened, but O’Neal needed to believe it to give himself a competitive edge over his opponent.
Despite Shaq’s known tendency to exaggerate, the rumor culminated in a cold war of sorts until O’Neal finally admitted that it was a lie. On an episode of ‘The Big Podcast’, the four-time NBA champion revealed the thought process behind his deception.
“I used to love David Robinson but I made up in my mind that he didn’t give me an autograph,” he said. “Because the first time I played him, he ran me out the gym. I was like, ‘Damn! Oh, this motherf**ker ain’t give me no autograph when I was 15. So now, when I see him, I’mma kill him’.”
5 years ago, O’Neal admitted the same to Robinson himself. During a reunion call for ’90s NBA stars, Shaq revealed, “David took all my shine when he came to San Antonio, so I hated him for that. And then you know, first couple of years he used to kill me, so I had to make up a rumor to get mad.”
"I had to make up a rumor to get mad." – Shaq@SHAQ apologizes to David Robinson (@DavidtheAdmiral) for making up a rumor about him not signing an autograph when he was younger that he used for motivation. pic.twitter.com/DOmqTmPcqG
— NBA (@NBA) May 18, 2020
You see, Shaq had spent much of his high school career in San Antonio. He gained local fame for carrying Robert G. Cole High School to a 68-1 record during his two-year stint and the arrival of Robinson made him the less beloved big in his home city.
That insecurity fueled a decade-long beef between the 7-footers, though they now speak of each other with nothing but respect. Six years ago, Robinson shared his perspective on the entire saga during an appearance on Sports Illustrated.
“You know Shaq. He’s a showman, and he’s really good at it. He’s entertaining, that’s what people love about him right? And so, he was making it entertaining. And for me, you know, I’m not a big trash-talker so I didn’t really get into the back and forth, but it’s fun… It made us have some great battles, which I love,” the 10-time All-Star shared.
During their careers, Robinson and O’Neal would face off 40 times, with each winning 20 of those contests. It’s about as evenly matched as any two competitors could be, and perhaps it was Shaq’s rumor that added an extra layer of ferocity to their bouts.
