The Orlando Magic haven’t been in the NBA for all that long, as they were only established in 1989 but in that time, they have had some great players suit up for them.
Shaquille O’Neal and Dwight Howard are two of them and someone who hopes to one day be mentioned alongside them is Paolo Banchero, who won Rookie of the Year in 2023. Banchero recently sat down for an interview during which he was asked who he’d pick between Shaq and Dwight in their prime, during their days with the Magic.
“That’s a little harder because Dwight Howard was pretty freaking good,” Banchero told Tomer Azarly from Clutch Points. “Um. They both got to a Finals. I have to give the slight edge to Shaq because he has a lot of the records also Dwight does have some records as well. But I think Shaq came out dominating quicker as a rookie, so I give it to Shaq.”
O’Neal certainly would have loved to hear that, considering his beef with Howard.
If you consider their overall careers with the Magic, Dwight might get the edge over Shaq, as O’Neal was only with the franchise for four seasons, while Dwight was there for eight.
In those four seasons, however, Shaq averaged 27.2 PPG, 12.5 RPG, 2.4 APG, 0.8 APG, and 2.8 BPG. He led the team to the NBA Finals in 1995 but they lost to the Houston Rockets. They’d make it to the Conference Finals the following year where they lost to Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls after which O’Neal left for the Los Angeles Lakers.
As for Howard, his peak with the Magic was probably from the 2008-09 season to 2010-11, when he won Defensive Player of the Year in all three campaigns. He averaged 20.5 PPG, 13.7 RPG, 1.5 APG, 1.1 SPG, and 2.7 BPG in those three years and led them to the Finals in 2009 where they lost to the Lakers. When you consider just their peak, Shaq does get the edge.
A 39-Year-Old Shaquille O’Neal Once Claimed Dwight Howard Couldn’t Beat Him 1-On-1
Shaq’s absolute peak would come later with the Lakers, as he led them to a historic three-peat from 2000 to 2002. At that time, there was no one in the league who had an answer for him and he’d have brushed Howard aside with ease.
Around about 10 years later though, Shaq was a shell of himself but even when he was 39 years old, he claimed Howard, who was at his prime, couldn’t beat him 1-on-1. You admire the confidence, but by then his body had broken down and the chances of him actually beating Howard were next to none.
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