Michael Jordan is widely regarded as the greatest basketball player of all-time, having enjoyed a Hall of Fame career in the NBA. A winner of six titles and five MVP awards, the Chicago Bulls icon led the franchise to two separate three-peats during the 1990s, fending off fierce competition and doing so in his own charismatic way.
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Michael Jordan’s Career Stats |
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|---|---|
|
Stat |
Number |
|
Points per game |
30.1 |
|
Assists per game |
5.3 |
|
Rebounds per game |
6.2 |
|
Steals per game |
2.3 |
|
Blocks per game |
0.8 |
|
Career awards |
5x MVP, 6x Finals MVP, 14x All-Star, 10x All-NBA First Team, 1x All-NBA Second Team, 1x DPOY, 9x NBA All-Defensive First Team, 1x ROTY |
|
NBA titles |
6 |
Whether it was the Utah Jazz powered by one of the greatest point guards in history, John Stockton, or the Phoenix Suns led by MVP Charles Barkley, Jordan and co found a way past some legendary names.
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But while many acknowledge Jordan’s GOAT status, even he himself has admitted that he didn’t quite have things go all his own way. The man who famously in The Last Dance documentary insisted that he feared no-one and always backed himself in a challenge, revealed that one NBA star – who also belongs in the Hall of Fame – “intimidated” him when he first played against him.
Michael Jordan Revealed Los Angeles Lakers Star “Intimidated” Him
Air Jordan couldn’t quite believe how physically dominant this NBA Hall of Famer was
While Jordan was never in his prime himself when Shaquille O’Neal was at the top of his game – the Big Diesel really entered into his own while with the Los Angeles Lakers – the younger version of him at Orlando Magic still posed a problem for many a player up and down the association. O’Neal in Orlando may have been a touch inexperienced given he was still in the early years of his NBA career, but had the athleticism, speed and power that had even Jordan a little fearful when he first spotted him.
[The last time] That I was intimidated in basketball? When I first saw Shaquille. How big he is. I mean, that was a short intimidation factor, but [laughs] I just couldn’t fathom how big he was.
Jordan would later add some context, mentioning a game he had against O’Neal in the season after he had made his return from Minor League Baseball.
I don’t know if I’ve ever told anyone this. I’m playing against Shaq. Shaq’s the biggest player I’ve ever seen in terms of physicality. He was this big, massive guy when I came back from baseball so I was somewhat intimidated. I didn’t really know how to play against him. Do I go right at him, do I stop and pull up? So I went right at him and he just knocked me straight to the floor and then he reached down to pick me up.
Jordan and O’Neal would face off against each other 21 times during the time they played, with 10 of those coming in the playoffs, and the Bulls legend holding bragging rights by coming out on top on 12 occasions. Jordan also enjoyed considerable success from a personal scoring level too, averaging 27 points per game across those contests, with his highest being a mammoth 64-point showing against O’Neal’s Magic on January 16, 1993.
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Shaquille O’Neal Goes Down as The Most Dominant Player in NBA History
Even Jordan admitted the Lakers made a mistake in trading him away
One of the most dominant players in NBA history, O’Neal’s playoffs run at the turn of the century in which he won three consecutive Finals MVP awards in the Los Angeles Lakers’ three-peat goes down as one of the greatest basketball has ever seen. An unstoppable scorer, monster rebounder and intimidating shot-blocker, The Big Aristotle dominated for the Lakers in a way a center arguably hadn’t since the days of Wilt Chamberlain and Bill Russell, while his place as one of the greatest centers of all-time is secured.
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Despite the immeasurable success O’Neal enjoyed with the Lakers in tandem with fellow legend, Kobe Bryant, tensions behind-the-scenes and frictions on the court led to the center’s departure from the team – something Jordan later admitted he was shocked by.
I would have never gotten rid of Shaq [O’Neal]. It’s as simple as that. You’ve got three championships with a big man, and big men are hard to find. Not only that, you have the most dominant big man in the game today. You don’t just send him away because you got some problems.
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Shaquille O’Neal’s Career Stats |
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|---|---|
|
Stat |
Number |
|
Points per game |
23.7 |
|
Assists per game |
2.5 |
|
Rebounds per game |
10.9 |
|
Steals per game |
0.6 |
|
Blocks per game |
2.3 |
|
Career awards |
1x MVP, 3x Finals MVP, 15x All-Star, 8x All-NBA First Team, 2x All-NBA Second Team, 4x All-NBA Third Team, 3x NBA All-Defensive Second Team, 1x ROTY |
|
NBA titles |
4 |
While the likes of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Hakeem Olajuwon enjoyed great success, their game was more about touch, finesse and control, particularly when it came to getting their buckets. O’Neal on the other hand, was simply doing his best impression of a basketball battering ram, backing down anyone and everyone into the post and then dunking on their heads with no respite.
To have even the great Michael Jordan say that he was “intimidated” by him, is arguably one of the greatest compliments O’Neal could receive for the kind of dominant player he was.
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