O’Neal, Shaquille

Shaquille O’Neal, in full Shaquille Rashaun O’Neal, byname Shaq, (born March 6, 1972, Newark, New Jersey, U.S.), American basketball player, named in 1996 to the National Basketball Association (NBA) list of its 50 greatest players of all time.

As a high-school senior in San Antonio, Texas, O’Neal attracted the attention of college recruiters when his team won the state championship. He attended Louisiana State University (LSU), where he quickly established himself as one of the best players in the nation. He was named the consensus College Player of the Year in 1991. O’Neal left school and entered the NBA draft in 1992 and was taken with the first pick by the Orlando Magic. In 2000, however, he finished his studies and earned a degree from LSU.

Named NBA Rookie of the Year in 1992–93, O’Neal led the Magic to a 41–41 record, 20 wins better than the previous season. Two years later he won the scoring title and led Orlando to the finals against the Houston Rockets. After Houston’s sweep of the Magic, O’Neal developed a reputation for losing big games. O’Neal’s great size and strength—he stood 7 feet 1 inch (2.16 metres) tall and weighed 315 pounds (143 kg)—made him virtually impossible to stop on the offensive end of the court. He was, however, a poor free-throw shooter, and opponents adopted a strategy (known as “Hack-a-Shaq”) of intentionally fouling him, knowing that he was less likely to make free throws than to score a field goal.

O’Neal was a member of the U.S. Olympic basketball team that won the gold medal in 1996, the same year he joined the Los Angeles Lakers, where he teamed with blossoming superstar Kobe Bryant. Although O’Neal continued to dominate on offense, his teams continued to disappoint in the play-offs. That changed in 1999–2000, when, under new Lakers coach Phil Jackson, he became the league’s Most Valuable Player (MVP). At Jackson’s urging, O’Neal became more of a team player, paying special attention to his defense, rebounding, and free-throw shooting. As a result, he led the Lakers to championships in 2001, 2002, and 2003, capturing the finals MVP award each year.

In 2004—after years of on-and-off feuding with Bryant, which had become a major distraction within the Lakers organization—O’Neal was traded to the Miami Heat. There he teamed with the talented young guard Dwyane Wade to lead Miami to an NBA championship in 2006. Injuries limited O’Neal’s production over the following seasons, and he was traded to the Phoenix Suns in February 2008. O’Neal’s playing style did not mix well with the Suns’ up-tempo game, and—despite having had a very solid 2008–09 season—he was dealt to the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2009 as Phoenix began a rebuilding process. He signed with the Boston Celtics in 2010, but an Achilles tendon injury limited his play. O’Neal retired after the 2010–11 season. His career totals include 28,596 points (the seventh highest total in NBA history at the time of his retirement) and 15 All-Star Game selections. O’Neal was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2016.

O’Neal had limited success as a rapper and as an actor, starring in such feature films as Blue Chips (1994), Kazaam (1996), and Steel (1997). He voiced himself in the computer-animated The LEGO Movie (2014). His gregarious personality and charm made him a popular pitchman throughout his career and helped him to become a commentator on an NBA television studio show after his retirement.