After LeBron James signed with the Los Angeles Lakers, one of the most storied franchises in all of sports, many legends who wore the purple and gold have weighed in on the newest Laker.
Now Shaquille O’Neal, who won three championships and spent much of his career in Los Angeles, has weighed in on James’ arrival to the Lakers. During an interview with Sports Illustrated, Shaq made it clear what LeBron needs to do to become forever known and beloved as a Laker.
“I think he’s going to have to win in those four years he is there, at least once,” O’Neal said, via Sports Illustrated. “He’s already a great player, like you said, he’s already touted as the greatest player in the game. But to be considered a great Laker, you have to win.”
"If LeBron wants to be considered a Lakers legend, he has to win at least one championship in L.A." — @SHAQ on LeBron to the Lakers pic.twitter.com/l6TTroU5WL
— Sports Illustrated (@SInow) July 6, 2018
During the interview, O’Neal shared a time from earlier during his time with the Lakers before he had won a championship.
“I remember when I first got there, I was putting up big numbers,” O’Neal said, via Sports Illustrated. “The great Kareem Abdul-Jabbar said ‘Shaq’s pretty good but he hasn’t won yet.’ That kind of hit me and then I retrained my focus a bit and started winning.”
Winning in Los Angeles will certainly be critical for James under the brightest lights. But as of now, the Golden State Warriors are heavy favorites to win the championship.
The good news is even if Los Angeles falls short this season, they’ll have LeBron for at least two seasons after.