The NBA athletes who has faced Shaquille O’Neal as an opponent, knows the unreal struggle to overcome the former NBA legend. The giant body structure of Shaq always got in the ways of the opponents trying to defend him which often led Shaq facing serious fouls committed by them.
Diesel, being really vocal and aggressive on-field, always took on those players who would intentionally foul him to stop him, which often led to heated arguments and O’Neal smacking them down.
Despite being such a dominant figure and absolutely fearless in nature, O’Neal would avoid one person in particular. It’s not necessarily out of fear though, it’s out of the sheer respect he has for that one person, the person he faced the most on-field in his life. It’s none other than the greatest player ever to play the game, Michael Jordan.
Why Shaq Would Never Confront MJ?
Despite being the last person to defeat Jordan in the playoffs while he was playing for the Chicago Bulls, Shaquille O’Neal would never dare talk trash to the Greatest of All Time. “You gotta stay away from Mike” He said on a recent interview. “Michael Jordan. You don’t want to mess with God.” Shaq famously quoted.
The greats are those who don’t let trash talk take them down and instead use it to get to another level. Michael Jordan was just like that. He never replied to words with words, he replied to them with his unreal show. In the 1993 game between the Chicago Bulls and the Orlando Magic, MJ absolutely demolished Shaq’s team by scoring an absurd 64 points.
Since that day, Diesel has not talked to the GOAT, as it would only spark MJ to get even more dangerous. MJ also holds a career head-to-head 12-9 advantage in the NBA over O’Neal.
Shaq’s respect for MJ grew over time as a result of his character and talent. Even though they were each other’s biggest competitors, they still respected one another. It’s interesting that he would never exploit the fact that he removed Jordan from the playoffs as his career’s pinnacle moment to disparage Michael Jordan.
