Shaq shares how much money he wants to coach Lakers
Mar 24, 2017; Los Angeles, CA, USA: Former Los Angeles Lakers center Shaquille O’Neal speaks during a NBA game between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Minnesota Timberwolves at the Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
If the Los Angeles Lakers want someone familiar with the organization as their new head coach, Shaquille O’Neal is available. He won’t come cheap, though.
Shaq weighed in on the Lakers job on “The Big Podcast” and named his price if the organization wants him: $25 million per year over four years.
"If they offered me $25M a year for 4 years, I'd coach the Lakers." 👀@SHAQ ponders a coaching career on #TheBigPodcast: https://t.co/wpZ6zHYULF pic.twitter.com/SDrN1AbDlc
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) April 21, 2022
“If the Lakers offer me $25 million a year for four years, I’ll coach the Lakers,” Shaq said. “I need a four-year contract. I’ll coach them right now.”
For reference, San Antonio’s Gregg Popovich is the NBA’s highest-paid coach at $11.5 million per year. In other words, O’Neal knows he’s setting a price that he’d never get. He definitely understands the instability that comes with the Lakers job, though, hence the demand for a four-year pact.
Shaq is not a legitimate candidate for the job and he knows it, so he’s just having fun here. Based on what he said about the players toward the end of the season, he probably would not want the headache.
