Shaquille O’Neal was damn near impossible to guard when he was in his element — something that was an every-game occurrence. This led former Golden State Warriors coach Don Nelson to come up with an intriguing idea.
Nelson would have a wager with his players saying he would pay them $100 dollars if they could force Shaq into committing a foul. Speaking on The Handle Podcast, former Warriors player Keith Jennings gave some insight into Nelson’s challenge.
“I remember when we played Orlando that night when I tore my ACL, coach Nelson said ‘Anybody that gets a foul on Shaq, you know, I’ll give you a 100 dollars’ and so I did get a foul on him and I messed my knee up, and was late to get on the bus. When I finally got to the bus, I stopped by him [Nelson] because he sat at the front, and I said ‘Coach Nelson, do I still get that 100 dollars?’ And he was like ‘Oh, that’s right. You did get a foul on Shaq’ and he reached into his pocket and gave me a nice 100 dollars.”
Good for Jennings that he got the money he was promised, but it did come at a cost, and rather painfully at that. It was also the same injury that cut short his career and that season, the Warriors ended their run with a 34-48 regular season record and failed to make the playoffs.
Nelson’s move perhaps bought the best out of his players, but on a larger scale, it also highlighted Shaq’s greatness on the court. He was widely regarded as the most dominant center even in his rookie year averaging 23.4 points, 13.9 rebounds, and 3.5 blocks. And while he did have fouling as a weakness, it didn’t deter him from achieving greatness.
It Was Lights Out At The Arena When Shaquille O’Neal Blocked A Shot Once
In what comes as a Superman-esque tale, Shaq once blocked a shot so hard that it caused the arena lights to flicker.
During a game in 1996, Shaq blocked a shot from Rex Chapman off the backboard so hard that it caused the arena lights to flicker. Such was the impact of his block that the arena’s lights malfunctioned for a moment, highlighting his massive physical prowess in the NBA.
Shaq will always be remembered for being a game-change in the NBA. His combination of size, speed, strength, and athleticism had never been seen in the league. And that he’s regarded as one of the players who have modeled their game after him speaks volumes about his dominance.
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