Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant famously led the Los Angeles Lakers to a historic three-peat from 2000 to 2002. O’Neal got much of the credit for those championships and deservingly won Finals MVP all three years, but on The Draymond Green Show, he stated it was down to Bryant sacrificing for the team.
“He (Bryant) sacrificed, he did,” O’Neal said. “Cuz all those Finals where he helped me win a championship, he damn sure could have easily got Finals MVP, but that was our plan. Big dog, you for the first three (quarters) and the fourth, I take over.
“My favorite game (was) in Indiana our first championship, where I fouled out,” O’Neal continued. “…. I already know if we f***ing lose this series, it’s going to be my fault. I’m looking at Kobe, motherf***** do me like (relax sign)… That motherf*****, he had like an incredible four or five — I knew then we was going to win our first championship.”
(starts at 2:31 mark):
O’Neal revealed that the game plan put in place by head coach Phil Jackson involved the offense revolving around him for the first three quarters. It was only in the fourth quarter that Bryant was given the reins to wreak havoc. O’Neal applauded Kobe for making that sacrifice, which led to his numbers being far superior.
2000 NBA Finals vs. Indiana Pacers
Shaquille O’Neal: 38.0 points, 16.7 rebounds, 2.3 assists, 1.0 steals, 2.7 blocks per game
Kobe Bryant: 15.6 points, 4.6 rebounds, 4.2 assists, 1.0 steals, 1.4 blocks per game
2001 NBA Finals vs. Philadelphia 76ers
Shaquille O’Neal: 33.0 points, 15.8 rebounds, 4.8 assists, 0.4 steals, 3.4 blocks per game
Kobe Bryant: 24.6 points, 7.8 rebounds, 5.8 assists, 1.4 steals, 1.4 blocks per game
2002 NBA Finals vs. New Jersey Nets
Shaquille O’Neal: 36.3 points, 12.3 rebounds, 3.8 assists, 0.5 steals, 2.8 blocks per game
Kobe Bryant: 26.8 points, 5.8 rebounds, 5.3 assists, 1.5 steals, 0.8 blocks per game
Perhaps if Kobe had been given the bigger role, he could have won Finals MVP in 2001 or 2002, and here’s why. In both those title runs, the Lakers had played against the formidable San Antonio Spurs. Bryant had a more favorable matchup there and it led to him putting up better scoring numbers than O’Neal (33.3 to 27.0 in 2001 and 26.1 to 21.4 in 2002).
So, it wasn’t a case of Kobe not being good enough to put up big numbers himself. In the NBA Finals, though, O’Neal had a more favorable matchup, especially against the Pacers and the Nets. It would have made little sense not to have the offense revolve around him.
Bryant’s career sure would have been looked at differently had he managed to be Finals MVP at least once during that stretch. The fact that he didn’t has been held against him when it comes to all-time rankings and things of that nature, as he doesn’t get a whole lot of credit for those three championships.
Shaquille O’Neal Believes Kobe Bryant Has To Be In The GOAT Conversation
Despite achieving all that he did during his remarkable career, Kobe’s name isn’t one that generally tends to come up when discussing who is the greatest player ever. His former teammate isn’t too happy about that and O’Neal has said Bryant belongs in the GOAT conversation.
“The only thing I don’t like about the (GOAT) conversation is that they don’t put my boy’s name (Kobe) in it. If you’re gonna be throwing names around, you gotta have my boy’s name in it,” said Shaq. “That’s like saying, ‘What are the best luxury cars out there: Lexus or Beemer? You gotta put Mercedes in there, too. Mike, LeBron, or Kobe, now y’all debate.”
It sure is interesting how O’Neal has become Bryant’s biggest supporter these days. If you had told someone back in 2004 that a day would come when the big man always comes to Kobe’s defense, they’d have laughed in your face. That’s the reality now, though.
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