Shaquille O’Neal had a fearsome reputation back when he used to play in the NBA, which was an obvious result of his playing style and temperament. One of the most dominant centers in the NBA, O’Neal once made Utah Jazz center Greg Ostertag cry after getting into an altercation during a match. At the same time, Shaq was raised by his former military sergeant stepdad Philip Harrison. As a result, despite never fearing confrontation, the LA Lakers legend respected authority.
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In his book, Shaq Uncut, O’Neal revealed that one such figure he respected was former LA Lakers head coach Phil Jackson. Jackson apparently called Shaquille O’Neal a “fat boy,” something the big man didn’t mind because he had earned Shaq’s respect.
Phil Jackson would call Shaquille O’Neal “fat boy” during training
There are not a lot of people who would have the guts to say anything disrespectful to Shaquille O’Neal. Apart from being a bonafide NBA legend, O’Neal was also one of the biggest, most fearsome players to have ever played in the league.
In contrast, Phil Jackson won a whopping 11 NBA titles during his career as a coach. He won 5 titles with the LA Lakers, including the 3-peat from 2000-02 which happened alongside Shaq. So naturally, O’Neal knew of Jackson’s expertise.
During this time, the coach earned the respect of O’Neal, which is why Shaq did not mind being called a “fat boy” by Jackson. O’Neal explained in his book that while he would have punched anyone else who said that in fact, Jackson had earned his respect, and Shaq knew that he cared about him, and only wanted to motivate him to be better:
“Phil had fun taking his digs at me. I didn’t mind, because I knew he cared about me and he did it to motivate me. The two of us would get into it once in a while. He’d say, “Get over there sooner.” I’d say, “I’m trying, man.” He’d come back with, “Well try harder, fat boy.” He called me that all the time. I’d get 39 points and he’d say, “That’s all you could come up with, fat boy?” Anyone else says that and I’m punching him in the face. But Phil had earned my respect.”
Shaquille O’Neal won 3 of his 4 titles under Phil Jackson
There is little doubt that O’Neal’s career wouldn’t have been as successful had it not been for the tutelage of Phil Jackson. Speaking in his docuseries SHAQ, O’Neal revealed that Jackson made him a more disciplined player and gave him advice that ended up making him an NBA great. Jackson had asked O’Neal to limit his rapping, commercials, and parties, claiming that Shaq could easily dominate the league:
“If you listen to me, you’ll get MVP, the regular season, MVP of the All-Star game and you’ll get finals MVP. No more rapping, limit your commercials, and no more parties or hanging out.”
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What’s more, when the Lakers fired Jackson back in June 2004, Shaquille O’Neal cited the sacking as one of the major reasons why he decided to leave. Shaq would go on to win just one more NBA title, in 2006, while playing for the Miami Heat.
