“Like Seeing God”- Shaquille O’Neal Recalls First On-Court Encounter With Michael Jordan

Shaquille O'Neal recalls playing against Michael JordanShaquille O’Neal and Michael Jordan (Image Source: VINCENT LAFORET/AFP via Getty Images)
Shaquille O’Neal is popular for his candid comments and his undying love for NBA legend Michael Jordan, a glimpse of which he showed very recently during his appearance on TheOldMan&TheThree podcast.

 

 

While talking to the host and former NBA player JJ Redick about prime Jordan’s exceptional on-court skills, Shaq disclosed, “I don’t know what God looks like, It’s like seeing God. The stuff he did on TV and when you saw it in real life, you’re like, ‘Oh my God, this is really real.’”

Explaining how he felt on his first encounter with MJ, the 15-time All-Star said, “One of the first plays of the game, in my mind I’m thinking, ‘I’m not getting f**ing dunked on,’ so I tried to meet him early. The mother****er slipped by me, I bumped him, and he still did that sh*t, laid it up off the glass, and the crowd went crazy. I was like, ‘F**k, this guy is real.’”

His Airness was a force to reckon with in his prime era, making and breaking records in the Chicago Bulls jersey. With his phenomenal talent, Michael Jordan has forced many to be his fans, including O’Neal, but there was a hint of jealousy about that.

Shaquille O’Neal Reveals His Jealousy Towards Michael Jordan

Shaquille O’Neal made a huge disclosure when JJ Redick asked the big man to lay his opinion on the never-ending GOAT debate in the NBA, excluding his name. Shaq said, “I get jealous that my name is not in that greatest of all time, but I come from an era where it’s dominantly, for sure, don’t mention my name, and of course, we have a lot of different categories.”

Acknowledging the great players that Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant were, Shaq revealed his jealousy towards them as he is not on the same list as the other two legends. Despite the 7-foot-1 dominant center’s brilliance on the hardwood, he could not reach the same place as MJ and Kobe, whom he respects.


Shaquille O’Neal might not have reached the GOAT status, but with his undeniable ability on the floor, he will be remembered as the most dominant player in the history of the NBA.