Shaquille O’Neal spoke about his move from the Orlando Magic to the Los Angeles Lakers on The OGs podcast. The 52-year-old reflected on how he aimed to maximize his career earnings through this transition. Shaq admitted that he initially had modest expectations for his earnings.
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For instance, he considered $8 million over a decade a large sum. However, his perspective shifted dramatically after joining the Magic as a rookie in 1992. The franchise offered Shaq a 7-year, $40 million rookie contract. This had already far exceeded his initial expectations.
Later, he even realized he could renegotiate this deal after his first three seasons. This meant that by his fourth year, ‘The Diesel’ had the potential to secure a contract worth around $100 million. He reflected on these moments, recalling,
“When I first came in, I was only expecting to make, in my high school dream world, $8 million for 10 years because that’s where the money was at. Then my guy told me, ‘Hey, I’mma get you $40 [million] for 7 [years] but after three years you can renegotiate’… ‘Probably it will be then worth $100 million.'”
What followed changed the trajectory of the NBA. Despite Shaq’s consistent brilliance, the Magic refused to make him one of the league’s highest-paid players. This frustration led O’Neal to leave Florida and sign with the Lakers in 1996. During his 9 years in the City of Angels, he earned over $166 million and became the highest-earning player for the 1999/00 season.
His exemplary earnings continued in the subsequent years. During his two years with the Miami Heat, Shaq was again the highest-paid NBA player. He earned approximately $40 million. Over the following four years, he accumulated an additional $62 million. This brought his total career earnings to over $286 million.
This aspect helped substantiate his transition to the Lakers and justified his decision to pursue a basketball career.
Why did Shaq take up basketball in the first place?
During his teenage years, Shaq juggled basketball and football. He even had dreams of making it to the NFL. However, a pivotal shift occurred when the NBA began offering lucrative contracts to its players. On The Big Podcast, ‘The Diesel’ recounted how his father made him realize this, recalling,
“My father came in and hit me in the back of the head with this paper. And there was this player from Atlanta… John Koncak, and he signed contract fifteen for three. My father watched him play, but I was already doing better than him in high school. The math thing did not add up for football, so I’ll start playing basketball.”
It’s fair to say that this decision has paid off handsomely in his life. It has also made him one of the most popular figures in the sports world, with a reported net worth of upwards of half a billion dollars.
