Shaquille O’Neal is perhaps the larger-than-life figure that has ever existed in the NBA. Shaq was a dominant force on the court, in his prime, there was nobody that could even slow him down, let alone stop him. This brought immense success for the big man in the early 2000s, his three straight Finals MVPs remain one of the most impressive accomplishments for any player in the league’s history.
But like with any top athlete, Shaquille O’Neal had his struggles. Kobe Bryant was his co-star when the Los Angeles Lakers won their threepeat, but the two shared a fraught relationship. It got so bad that at one point, O’Neal reportedly threatened to kill Kobe. After their careers had ended, the two sat and talked things out, but Bryant’s tragic passing brought to light how much time was wasted in needless animosity. And it took a toll on Shaq, who revealed how hard it has been for him since.
Shaq:
“I don’t go to bed till 5 AM… Ever since Kobe [Bryant] and my sister died I can’t sleep.”
🥺❤️
(via @HBO) pic.twitter.com/ZQtACr0lRG
— Legion Hoops (@LegionHoops) December 27, 2022
“I don’t go to bed till 5 AM… Ever since Kobe [Bryant] and my sister died I can’t sleep.”
Shaquille O’Neal suffered unimaginable losses in just a few months in late 2019 and early 2020. In October, his sister Ayesha passed away after a battle with cancer. And as tough as that was on the big man, the next blow came just months later when Kobe Bryant tragically lost his life in a helicopter crash. Despite his jovial personality, it’s easy to understand why O’Neal has struggled to recover from those losses. He has spoken about his regrets regarding his relationship with Kobe before as well.
Shaquille O’Neal Admitted His Regret Over Not Talking To Kobe Bryant Enough Before He Passed
Life is both precious and fleeting; it’s easy for any human being to get lost in the things that don’t matter all that much. Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant weren’t in touch as much as they should have been even after they reconciled, something that only became apparent to O’Neal after Kobe’s sad demise.
“You put off [getting in touch],” O’Neal, 50, tells PEOPLE in this week’s issue, on newsstands this Friday. “I’ll never get to see Kobe again, in real life, forever. And I just should have called. He should have called. We both should have called. But he’s working, I’m working, so it’s ‘I’ll see you when I see you.’
Despite everything that he has achieved on the court and the empire he has built off of it, some things are out of reach, even for Shaquille O’Neal. And while regrets like this don’t ever go away entirely, the hope is that Shaq can find a way to process them and continue spreading joy like he always has throughout his life.
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