On the court, gold and purple were fan favorites in the early 200s. You couldn’t help but be captivated. Watching Shaquille O’Neal dominate the paint while Kobe Bryant chipped away the flanks ensured so.
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But behind the scenes, the Lakers were a mess. Shaquille O’Neal, scorned by Orlando’s betrayal, hoped to make himself the face of Hollywood’s most famous franchise. But, contrary to Shaq’s hopes, Kobe Bryant wasn’t on board with his plans. Bryant was the star in his own world and he was solely dedicated to becoming one in reality.
When two humongous egos collide, friction is inevitable. It’s all about the durability of the bond before it gives away. For the Lakers, Kobe and Shaq’s feud reached its breaking point in 2003-04. But before the ultimate end of the dynasty, Shaq predicted the end of their winning streak to Phil Jackson’s dismay.
Shaquille O’Neal believed the Lakers couldn’t win a championship with Kobe Bryant
Under Phil Jackson’s first term, the Los Angeles Lakers were a force of nature. A proper dynasty that dominated the league for years. The duo of Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal combined with Phil Jackson’s championship experience led the franchise back to its glory days.
But Kobe and Shaq had no intentions of playing together. Phil Jackson and Shaq both got sick of Bryant and his selfishness. After the 2004 All-Stars game, Phil Jackson invited Shaq and Rick Fox to his room to discuss Bryant and his future with the LA Lakers.
When the legendary head coach asked O’Neal whether they could win another championship, Shaq responded by suggesting they couldn’t do so with Kobe Bryant. But in continuation, Rick Fox acknowledged how much the Lakers needed Kobe. The 7ft 1″ center confessed that the Lakers couldn’t win without him either.
This essentially sealed their fate. At this point, deep down, Rick, Phil, and Shaq knew they would not win another title.
In his book Three-Ring Circus, Jeff Pearlman wrote of the meeting in detail.
Pearlman: “When the team was in Miami, Jackson invited Fox and O’Neal to visit his hotel room for a state-of-the-Lakers powwow. He first asked whether the two veterans thought Bryant should sit out the season and focus solely on the trial. Neither believed that to be a good idea. Then a second question. “I’ll never forget it,” Fox recalled. “He asked whether we thought we could win a championship with Kobe.” O’Neal didn’t need time to think. “No,” he said. “No way.” Fox agreed. “Honestly, Phil,” he said, “I don’t think we can win a championship with Kobe or without Kobe.”
Phil Jackson favored Shaq over Bryant
As a head coach, Jackson was a polarizing personality. What he had done in Chicago depended on having one leader, one superstar. But with the Lakers, the two-star team wasn’t a tailored fit for his experience. Kobe was nothing like Scottie Pippen and Shaq was nothing like Michael Jordan.
In fact, Kobe was a lot closer to Jordan than Shaq ever could be. O’Neal, on the other hand, was an entity by himself. This clash of two gigantic egos was too much even for Phil Jackson at first. But he found a way.
Instead of easing the clash, Phil Jackson instead began to fuel the feud. He often sided with Shaq and called out Kobe for his selfishness. Even Robert Horry believed that Jackson was the reason the Lakers’ two superstars were at each other’s throats.
Perhaps what Jackson couldn’t anticipate was Jerry Buss’s affection for the young Mamba. As the owner, he handed Bryant the keys to the Lakers and chucked Shaq and O’Neal out. The divide-and-rule campaign eventually backfired on Jackson. He took Shaq down with himself. Unfortunately for the fans who wanted the dynasty to continue.
