SUMMARY
- In 2009, Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant shared the All-Star MVP trophy.
- O'Neal claimed that Bryant willingly gave the trophy to him without him asking for it.
Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant are still the benchmark of what all NBA duos are judged on today. This LA Lakers duo combined for three NBA titles with a couple of MVPs included. Between 1996 and 2004, they were the league’s best players by a huge margin and the Lakers thrived under their leadership. However, it all came crashing down when one wanted more than the other, and O’Neal got traded to the Miami Heat.
Over the years, people assumed that O’Neal and Bryant were arch-rivals who wanted nothing to do with the success they found with each other. Bryant’s motive was also clear, he wanted to win more titles to prove that he was better than everybody else who dominated the league. But there was still love between them since they grew up together in the NBA.
Kobe Bryant willingly gave Shaquille O’Neal the 2009 All-Star Game MVP instead of sharing it
Shaquille O’Neal recently made an appearance on the Pound 4 Pound Podcast hosted by former UFC Welterweight Champion Kamaru Usman, and ex-double champ, Henry Cejudo. Shaq initially spoke about living life complaint-free and appreciating the ones around him before Cejudo brought up the time Bryant and O’Neal shared the 2009 All-Star Game MVP title.
Shaq said, “That was him. But again, on the outside, people think we hate each other. Cause I wasn’t going to ask him. I was like, ‘I’ll wait.'” Cejudo also recalled when Bryant let Shaq’s child keep the trophy. Shaq responded, “I was on Phoenix, I was on my way down, but I saw in the game when nobody was doing sh*t and Kobe just kept feeding me. I was like, ‘Man, this sh*t felt like a flashback… So I was like I know they’re going to give it to him. But when they called both of our names, I was going to say, ‘Alright, you take it.’”
O’Neal claimed he didn’t want to take the trophy since Kobe was thriving and he had already lived through such moments. He continued, “I wasn’t going to say nothing. He looked at my boy and he’s like, ‘Hey man, you take it.’ I was like, for real? That’s when I knew all the silly sh*t I was doing, delete it.” Big Diesel often threw subtle jibes at Bryant after they parted ways. However, he realized it was time to put all his tactics aside and respect Kobe in better ways.
Unlike Shaquille O’Neal, Kobe Bryant meant strict business
While most of us would agree that this was an emotional moment for the former Lakers duo, Kobe Bryant meant strict business. After the All-Star, Bryant didn’t feel the need to dwell on it but rather focused on what he was supposed to do in the league, to win.
According to The Seattle Times, Bryant said, “We are not going to go back to the room and watch ‘Steel Magnolias’ or something like that, you know what I’m saying, crying, all that stuff. We had a good time. That’s all.” Years after they retired from the sport, Shaq and Kobe remained good friends. However, one of O’Neal’s biggest regrets in life is that he never spent enough time with the Black Mamba before his passing.