“Let Dwyane Wade Go Do Him”: Shaquille O’Neal Needed a Gary Payton Pep Talk to Get Over His Ego to Win a Championship

If the 2005-06 season panned out any differently, Shaquille O’Neal’s legacy would not have been the same. The 4x NBA champ almost ruined the fourth and last-ever championship that he won with Dwyane Wade because of the same ego that weakened his and Kobe Bryant’s relationship.

The Big Aristotle always wanted the ball more than he got from his teammates, with whom he achieved a lot of success anyway. Obviously, it was his hunger to prove himself the best to ever do it. However, that is what led to him drifting away from Penny Hardaway in Orlando.

The 15x All-Star didn’t learn his lesson either when he came to LA or after he arrived in Miami. It was after a collapse in the Eastern Conference Finals in 2005 and a pep talk by Gary Payton that O’Neal let D-Wade do his thing and won a Championship by taking a back seat for the first time.

When Gary Payton asked Shaquille O’Neal to let Dwyane Wade do him

The legendary point guard Gary Payton, in his conversation with Warriors’ forward Draymond Green, revealed how he managed to convince Shaq to let a 3rd-year guard lead them to the championship and to not get angry about not getting the ball much.

“I said Shaq listen here, look what young fella [Dwyane Wade] did last year,” The Glove revealed how he handled the 3x Finals MVP.

“You guys lost the Eastern Conference Finals. That’s why Pat Riley brought all of us together. To win a Championship. We’re here. You’ve got to make him be the first tier. Just let him go do him.”

 

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And O’Neal surprisingly obliged. Payton then said how he had never seen any individual perform as The Flash did after that to lead them successfully to a championship against all odds.

How great was Wade that year?

After leading the Heat to the Finals averaging over 27.2 points, 5.7 rebounds, 6.7 assists, and 2 steals per game in the season, Wade struggled to get going in the first two games against the Mavericks. He shot a horrendous 38.6% from the field in 2-straight losses to start the series.

Until Wade’s 15-point quarter in Game 3, it looked imminent that MVP Dirk Nowitzki’s team would go 3-0 in the series to clinch the Mavericks, their first-ever title.

However, it was the Heat who’d get the first franchise championship as Wade would score 42, 36, 43, and 36 in the last 4 games of the series to win it 4-2. The future first-ballot Hall-of-Fame guard would collect his first and only Finals MVP trophy as well for his incredible effort.

They all must be grateful to Shaquille O’Neal for making himself understand that it was okay for somebody else to win the MVP if it meant a championship in return.

About the author

Akash Murty

An Electrical and Electronics Engineer by degree, Akash Murty is an NBA Editor at The SportsRush. Previously a Software Engineer, Murty couldn’t keep himself away from sports, and his knack for writing and putting his opinion forward brought him to the TSR. A big Soccer enthusiast, his interest in basketball developed late, as he got access to a hoop for the first time at 17. Following this, he started watching basketball at the 2012 Olympics, which transitioned to NBA, and he became a fan of the game as he watched LeBron James dominate the league. Him being an avid learner of the game and ritually following the league for around a decade, he now writes articles ranging from throwbacks, and live game reports, to gossip. LA Lakers are his favourite basketball team, while Chelsea has his heart in football. He also likes travelling, reading fiction, and sometimes cooking.

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