As the saying goes, it is better late than never.
For Shaquille O'Neal, what was seemingly destined to happen after he was drafted by the Orlando Magic in 1992, happened on Tuesday night during a 127-113 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder. The Magic made his number 32 the first retired jersey in the team's 35 year history. It will be the third and final jersey retirement for O'Neal, as the Los Angeles Lakers retired his number 34 in 2013 and the Miami Heat retired his number 32 in 2016.
O'Neal and the franchise that he helped lead to an NBA Finals appearance in 1995, when he was just 23 years old, had somewhat of a rocky separation.
Admittedly, O'Neal has said that Penny Hardaway, his fellow all-star teammate in Orlando, was the perfect sidekick, while at the same time saying that he did not feel support from Hardaway during his 1996 free agency. Also at the core of the reason for O'Neal's departure was a poll in the Orlando Sentinel that asked if he was worth the $115 million (for seven years) that had been offered by the Magic. The poll, which in hindsight posed a ridiculous question, yielded a 91.3 percent "no" result. According to a Rex Hoggard story in the Sentinel at the time, the contract would have paid O'Neal $16.8 million per season, with him earning $23 million in the 2002-2003 season.
O'Neal, of course, ended up signing with the Lakers, on July 18, 1996, a seven year deal worth $120 million. It has also been said over the years that O'Neal felt he was worth more, and subsequently wanted more, than the seven year, $105 million contract that Alonzo Mourning signed with the Miami Heat that same July.
O'Neal teamed with Kobe Bryant in Los Angeles, which formed one of the greatest one-two punches in NBA history. The Lakers (2000, 2001, 2002) became just the third franchise to win three consecutive championships, joining Bill Russell's Boston Celtics and Michael Jordan's Chicago Bulls.
Still, it is always worth wondering what would had happened if Shaq and Penny (O'Neal's first star sidekick) would have stayed together. At the time of O'Neal's departure, the pair had led the Magic to three consecutive playoff appearances - including that 1995 Finals trip (a sweep at the hands of the Houston Rockets) and an appearance in the Eastern Conference Finals in 1995-1996, losing to Jordan's Bulls. With the Bulls on their way out just two seasons later, there is no telling what the 26-year-old O'Neal and 27-year-old Hardaway could have accomplished in 1998-1999 and beyond. In fact, in that lockout shortened '98-'99 season, the Magic finished 33-17, losing 3-1 to the Philadelphia 76ers in the first round.
Over his Magic career, O'Neal was the 1993 NBA Rookie of the Year, the 1995 NBA scoring champion, and a four-time All-Star (1993-1996). He was named to the All-NBA Second Team in 1995, and Third Team in 1994 and 1996.
"There's no other place that I would have wanted to start my career," O'Neal said during his speech on Tuesday night. "Orlando will forever have a special place in my heart."
Despite leaving prematurely, O'Neal helped lay the foundation for what the Magic were and would become. A young franchise (the Magic had been existence for three years when they drafted O'Neal) can always benefit from having a superstar during their infant years, allowing them instant credibility, relevancy, and success. O'Neal, simply, fit the bill.
Dwight Howard (six-time all-star, five-time all NBA first team, three-time Defensive Player of the Year, five rebounding titles, two block titles while in a Magic uniform) is likely the next to have his jersey retired by the Magic. Nick Anderson, an original Magic player who played there from 1989-1999, could leap Howard in that regard. Anderson no doubt should have his number 25 hang in the rafters in Orlando. If not for Tracy McGrady, Hardaway would have his number 1 eventually retired.
Despite how the relationship ended, it makes sense retiring O'Neal's jersey first out of any in team history, given that he was the one that set the tone for years to come.
Even if it was a little overdue.
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