Shaquille O’Neal felt he took it easy on Hakeem Olajuwon during the 1995 NBA Finals resulting in the Magic getting swept 4-0.
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Two of the most intimidating big men to grace the NBA hardwood, Shaquille O’Neal and Hakeem Olajuwon, had some intense battles during their careers. However, the highlight was the 1995 NBA Finals, when a young Shaq faced the reigning Finals MVP Hakeem.
At the time, Big Diesel played for the Orlando Magic, a team that had drafted him. Shaq had just burst into the scene, winning his first scoring title. While Shaq was making his NBA Finals debut, Hakeem and the Rockets were the defending champions, looking to go back-to-back.
The two Hall of Famers faced each other a total of 20-times in their careers, with Shaq having a dominant lead 14-6. The Magic center had a better stat line than Hakeem as well. Shaq averaged 22.1 PPG, 12.4 RPG, and 1.8 BPG in these matchups. On the other hand, Hakeem had 18.4 PPG, 9.1 RPG, and 2.4 BPG.
During a recent appearance on The Jordan Harbinger Show, Shaq gave an insight into his mindset during those Finals and how he was distracted.
Shaquille O’Neal gives his reasons for losing the 1995 NBA Finals.
In the battle of big men during the 1995 NBA Finals, Hakeem reigned supreme, winning his second consecutive title and Finals MVP. Shaq, who was making his Finals debut, admitted to being distracted and arrogant at the time.
The seven-foot center had done the impossible, eliminating Michael Jordan and the Bulls in the second round of the playoffs. Leading the league in scoring, Shaq was spectacular in the Finals. The Big Diesel averaged a 28-point double-double, shooting almost 60% from the field.
However, the former ROY couldn’t get past The Dream, giving the following reasons for it.
“I think, I showed him too much respect. We had the same agent at one time, and he was just a nice guy. And I didn’t want to hurt my friend,” said Shaq. “He kinda set me up because, during the regular season, I was having my way with him. So, when we got to the finals that year in Orlando, I was real arrogant. We had ten days off we were doing things all wrong, flying to Atlanta, partying. It was out of control. We were having a mini-parade cause I thought we were gonna win it. Then he just turned that switch on and I couldn’t get him to turn it off.”
“Usually a guy like that, on the first play of the game, I would try to commit an offensive foul. That was my thing, I take three steps to the middle and swing the elbow around. If your face is in the middle of the way, not my problem. With him, I was real finesse, trying to be cute. But it also taught me a valuable lesson. I said to myself, if I ever make it back to the Finals again, I’m gonna throw a dominant performance so dominant it’ll guarantee a win. I think that’s why I got three Finals MVPs.”
Shaq would deliver on his words as he signed with the LA Lakers the following years. The TNT analyst would 3-peat and be the Finals MVP in each case.
