Shaquille O’Neal faked a heart attack and said “I was Victor Wembanyama before him” when he got the news that the Orlando Magic had retired his jersey.
During the NBA Tip-Off shot on Thursday, TNT played a video from Magic CEO Alex Martins telling O’Neal that he would be the first player in the franchise’s history to have his jersey retired.
O’Neal was on the panel with Charles Barkley, Kenny Smith and Ernie Johnson when he got the call.
O’Neal was drafted by the Magic in 1992 and, in 1995, led the team to the NBA Finals.
Shaquille O’Neal began career, put up big numbers with Orlando Magic
O’Neal was drafted by the Magic in 1992 and by 1995, he and point guard Penny Hardaway had led the team to the Finals.
The 1995 season was O’Neal’s best in Orlando. He led the league with a 29.3 scoring average. He averaged 11.4 rebounds and shot 58% from the field. The Magic knocked off the Boston Celtics, Chicago Bulls and Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference Playoffs on their way to the Finals.
In the Finals, O’Neal averaged 28.0 points, 12.5 rebounds and 6.3 assists as the Magic were swept by the Houston Rockets.
In comparing himself to Wembanyama, O’Neal explained that he had a lot of hype and felt the pressure of having to turn the fledgling Orlando franchise into a winner. In his rookie season, they went 41-41. By Year 2, they won 50 games. In the Finals run of 1994-95, they were 57-25.