Shaquille O'Neal goes down in NBA history as one of the greatest basketball players of all-time, dominating the league while with the Orlando Magic and then the Los Angeles Lakers.
Among the best centers to ever play the game, the Big Diesel has made a successful career since retiring from the NBA, being one of the analysts on the universally beloved Inside the NBA show alongside the likes of Ernie Johnson, Charles Barkley and Kenny Smith.
O'Neal's game was predicated on bullying players in the post and dunking on whoever dared try to block him, while, from a defensive point of view, he relished the prospect of smaller guards looking to come into the paint for a layup. In his prime, O'Neal was practically unguardable, and his performances during the Lakers' three-peat is among the best in playoff history.
Shaquille O'Neal named his 10 greatest NBA players of all-time Related
Shaquille O'Neal Named his 10 Greatest NBA Players of All-Time
The Los Angeles Lakers icon has weighed in on basketball's GOAT debate.
But while Shaq being the 7 foot plus monster, had opponents fearful of running into him, it appears even the Hall of Famer had some trepidation when coming up against some of the league's best. Below are the four players who O'Neal has admitted "terrified" him, including additional quotes on how he felt about the players themselves.
Michael Jordan
By the time O'Neal entered the league in 1992 as the first overall pick in the draft by the Orlando Magic, Michael Jordan had already set about establishing his case as the greatest basketball player of all-time. By the summer of 92, the Chicago Bulls star had won two titles and Finals MVP awards apiece, while also being named the league's Most Valuable Player on three occasions (1988, 1991 and 1992).
Jordan is the only guard O'Neal has admitted scared him, and when you look at the kind of aura and status he had built up, it's easy to see why. A defensive machine who led the league in steals for three years, and an unstoppable force offensively - he was the scoring champ 10 times including for seven seasons in a row between 1988 and 1993 - Jordan had it all.
Michael Jordan's Career Stats
Stat
Points per game
Assists per game
Rebounds per game
Steals per game
Blocks per game
Career awards
NBA titles
For one, he's the greatest player. Two, I was worried about him dunking on me and having to go back and face the fellas. And then three, he was just so hot. Like, the stuff that I saw when I was in college on tv, it's like really real. I was terrified.
Patrick Ewing
The big man that O'Neal has gone on record to say was one of his idols and mentors as he came into the league, Patrick Ewing was the archetypal center of the 1990s in the NBA. A brute force who could bully you in the post and block shots at whim, the New York Knicks legend dominated opponents for a long time during the decade.
Michael Jordan in a Chicago Bulls jersey with a red NBA-themed background Related
Michael Jordan Named the NBA Team He Was 30 Minutes Away From Joining
Basketball's GOAT was one phone call away from joining one of the Chicago Bulls' fiercest rivals.
The only thing Ewing couldn't do was get over the championship hump, instead regularly coming up short against the likes of Jordan and the Bulls. The closest he ever got to capturing a ring was during the 1993/1994 season, in which the Knicks made it all the way to the finals to face off against the Houston Rockets (Jordan had at this point retired).
Despite going 3-2 ahead in the series, Hakeem Olajuwon and co would win Games 6 and 7 in the closing seconds to ensure heartbreak. Nevertheless, Ewing still goes down as one of the greatest centers in history, averaging over 20 points per game and close to 10 rebounds per contest too.
Patrick Ewing's Career Stats
Stat
Points per game
Assists per game
Rebounds per game
Steals per game
Blocks per game
Career awards
NBA titles
As a youngster I used to practice all these old school moves... really old school moves. Then one day I was watching Patrick Ewing in Georgetown. Big guy. Mean. Physical. Throwing people around. Running the court.
So I'm watching Patrick Ewing, wearing the 33. As I became better, I wanted to be like Patrick Ewing. He was the first player where I played against him, I was actually intimidated.
Dominique Wilkins
One of the must-watch stars of the NBA during the 1980s, Dominique Wilkins captured the imagination of basketball fans around the world with his high-flying and athleticism. Having earned the nickname of the 'Human Highlight Film', Wilkins would win the NBA's Slam Dunk contest at All-Star weekend twice, doing so first in 1985 and then again in 1990.
A nine-time All-Star, Wilkins would lead the league in scoring in 1986, earning his one and only All-NBA First Team selection that year. He finished his career averaging close to 25 points per game, and quite rightly, is in the NBA Hall of Fame, while his no.21 jersey number has been retired by the Atlanta Hawks - undoubtedly one of the greatest small forwards in NBA history.
|Dominique Wilkins' Career Stats|
|Stat|Number|
|Points per game|24.8|
|Assists per game|2.5|
|Rebounds per game|6.7|
|Steals per game|1.3|
|Blocks per game|0.6|
|Career awards|9x All-Star, 1x All-NBA First Team, 4x All-NBA Second Team, 2x All-NBA Third Team|
|NBA titles|0|
|---|
Dominique was sort of like a mentor to me. He was always a great player. He was always one of those guys that were caught behind Mike. Mike just got so much fanfare and so much play. He really didn't get a lot of recognition.
David Robinson
A two-time champion in the NBA with the San Antonio Spurs, David Robinson enjoyed his best years in the association during the early part of the 1990s. The first five years of that decade saw 'The Admiral' lead the league in several categories, including being the scoring champion in 1994, the rebounding leader in 1991, and the block king in 1992.
The 10 greatest NBA players of all time have been named & ranked by AI - in order Related
AI Names & Ranks 10 Greatest NBA Players in History
ChatGPT has had its say and has ranked the 10 greatest NBA players of all time.
A 10-time All-Star who was also named to the All-NBA First Team on four occasions, Robinson would also win the Defensive Player of the Year award in 1992, just months before O'Neal entered the league with the Magic.
Robinson would spend his entire career with the Spurs, and would be a key reason as to why the franchise would ease past O'Neal and the Lakers en route to their 1999 title triumph. Led by Robinson and new star Tim Duncan, the Spurs swept the Lakers in emphatic fashion in the Western Conference Semi-Finals, with the former leading the way in scoring in two of the games.
David Robinson's Career Stats
Stat
Points per game
Assists per game
Rebounds per game
Steals per game
Blocks per game
Career awards
NBA titles
I loved him so much that I had to make up a fake story to be able to play against him because David was a nice man. He's just so nice. So, now when I play against him I'm like, 'I can't be mean to a guy that nice and then I have to make up a story'… Because me, when I get upset, I play harder and I play better. So, I had to make up a wild story in my head to go against him.
So, according to O'Neal, the four players who "terrified" him are Michael Jordan, Patrick Ewing, Dominique Wilkins and David Robinson - all of them being All-Stars, All-NBA members and belonging in the NBA's Hall of Fame too. Below are the exact quotes from the Inside the NBA star on the players that had him scared.
I mentioned this a couple years a couple months ago about when I was playing against Jordan how terrified I was. There was only a couple players that when I first went up against, I was terrified.
Patrick Ewing, terrified because I grew up watching him because you know he knows I’m from New Jersey, I had a pair of orange and blue Ewings. I actually was terrified of Mike. Man, I was terrified of getting dunked on by Dominique, and I was terrified of David Robinson.