According to Kobe Bryant, Phil Jackson’s Lakers could have cemented their legacy as the greatest team of all time and gone on an unparalleled run of dominance… if Shaquille O’Neal hadn’t been lazy in his prime.
In an hour-long interview with Patrick Bet-David, the founder of Valuetainment, the former Lakers superstar reflected on his partnership with O’Neal, and said the center could have been the greatest player of all time if he had Bryant’s work ethic.
Bet-David: “Who would Shaq be if he had your work ethic?”
Kobe: “He’d be the greatest of all time. He’d be the greatest of all time, for sure. He’d be the first to tell you that. I mean this guy was a force like I have never seen. I mean, it was crazy.
A guy at that size…. Generally guys at that size are a little timid and they don’t want to be tall. They don’t want to be big. Man, this dude was… he did not care. He was mean. He was nasty. He was competitive. He was vindictive.
I wish he was in the gym. I would have had [expletive] 12 rings…. It wouldn’t even be close.
…. Me and Shaq sit down all the time and I say ‘if your lazy [expletive] was in shape.'”
Bryant predicted that he and Shaq likely would have got along in Los Angeles if Shaq had been more committed to the game, allowing the pair to continue their dynasty.
Instead, Phil Jackson retired following the Lakers’ 2004 NBA Finals loss, and O’Neal was traded to Miami, and won a title with the Heat in 2006. Bryant would eventually add two more rings to his collection in 2009 and 2010.
Bryant clarified his comments on Shaq on Wednesday morning with a vague hashtag that likely means “most dominant ever.”
Shaq, meanwhile, responded on Instagram, where he made the solid point that “you don’t get statues by not working hard.” The Lakers unveiled a 1,200-pound bronze statue of O’Neal outside the Staples Center in 2017.
Bryant later tweeted that he and Shaq are “too old to beef.”
