Hall of Famer Shaquille O’Neal doesn’t think LeBron James will be as celebrated in Los Angeles Lakers lore as a few other legends who won multiple titles with the franchise, including himself.
“The good thing for LeBron: He did win one. He did win one. But Kareem got six. Magic got five. Kobe got five. I got four,” O’Neal told For The Win’s Prince J. Grimes in an interview last week.
O’Neal added, “So he’s at the party, but he’s not on stage.”
Though Kareem Abdul-Jabbar won six career championships, only five of those were with L.A., matching Magic Johnson and Kobe Bryant for the most in the team’s history. And while James claimed one NBA championship over eight seasons in Hollywood, that 2020 title was the fourth of his career – tying him with O’Neal. The Lakers were also the third different team with which LeBron won a championship.
O’Neal did defend James from the “ring chaser” label following the 41-year-old’s stunning move to the Philadelphia 76ers in July. James will team up with former MVP Joel Embiid, former Finals MVP Jaylen Brown, and one of the league’s best offensive backcourt tandems in Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe – albeit for a franchise that’s made it past the second round just once this millennium.
“The man is not chasing rings,” O’Neal said of James. “The man has already gotten rings the right way. And toward the end of your career, if you can join up and help somebody else get a ring, and continue to get rings, I call it ‘ring continuancy.’ Not ring chasing.
“Ring chasing will be like, ‘I don’t have a ring. … Now I’m going to get with a super team to win a ring.’ … LeBron played the right way. Put the team together in Miami, a lot of people didn’t like that but it worked. Went back to Cleveland, got one. Got one in L.A.”
O’Neal won his first three NBA titles in a Lakers three-peat alongside Bryant from 1999-2002. His fourth and last championship was in 2006 with Dwyane Wade and the Miami Heat.
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Source: Sports Basketball – The Score
