Shaquille O’Neal must hold a very special place in Dwyane Wade’s life. After all, he won his first of three championships alongside the Diesel. The two created a dynasty in Miami that dominated in 2006. Despite going the distance with Wade, Shaq wasn’t entirely sold on Flash’s skills. He believed that the Miami Heat legend was less efficient under stress than LeBron James.
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To be fair to O’Neal, he played with both Bron and Wade. So, he definitely has a good grasp of their skills. Add Shaquille’s legacy and basketball perception to the mix and you get a sharp observation.
In all honesty, LeBron has already proven how he is amongst the best ever to play. And while Wade is an exceptional player, he is not really in the same conversation as James.
But Shaquille O’Neal’s prediction is from before 2011. This is when LeBron hadn’t yet won a ring. But what exactly did Shaquille claim and how did he justify his claim?
Shaquille O’Neal wasn’t too impressed by Dwyane Wade’s performance
O’Neal in his book Shaq Uncut talked about Dwyane Wade extensively. He credited the 6ft 4″ superstar for his performance in the 2006 championship. However, Shaq was still critical of his former teammate. He claimed that things hadn’t ended on a good note for them.
Shaq, in his 2011 book, also explained how LeBron James was a better performer under stress.
Shaq: “It was interesting to watch the Miami Heat after they signed LeBron and Bosh. When I saw their “Big Three” I thought of two things: (1) they could be like the 72-10 team that Michael Jordan had in Chicago; and (2) “Get ready, boys. You are going to feel pressure like you’ve never known in your life.” LeBron, I think, was ready for it. The other two guys? I’m not sure. DWade is a clutch player, but he doesn’t like all the chatter. He wants good press. Anything negative gets him thinking about the wrong things.”
It seems that the two from the 2006 Miami Heat squad have made up. There was a time when Shaq wasn’t interested in Wade or his life but things seem to have changed now. The two have looked cordial in their recent public interactions.
It’s also interesting that during the pandemic, Shaq and Wade were the highest-paid NBA stars through social media.
Shaq and Wade made $80,000 in 2020
During the pandemic, when the world was in lockdown, Shaq and Wade were making a ton of money with every social media post.
As per a British website, Shaquille O’Neal made at least $44137 per post. Meanwhile, his former teammate Dwyane Wade made $43,302 per social media post. That’s a lot of money considering the entire world was on a standstill. But what would you expect from two of the most talented NBA players of the modern era.
