It’s widely believed that LeBron James will hit free agency this summer and look for a situation where he can contend for an NBA title immediately. In the mind of Shaquille O’Neal, this would be a mistake.
Shaq said Friday that his own late career efforts to pick up as many rings as possible were misguided, and James should not do the same thing.
“My problem toward the end of my career was I was trying to shut everybody up and I was greedy,” Shaq said, via ESPN’s Ian Begley. “After I got to three [titles], everybody was saying I couldn’t get another. So I got four. After I got the fourth, they were saying I couldn’t get another one. So I was trying to make quick stops to get it. Phoenix, Cleveland, Boston.”
Shaq believes that James’s legacy is already secure, and going after more titles won’t add much to it.
“Somebody told me a long time ago — they said your book is already set. You can add index pages toward the end, but your book is already set. So LeBron’s book is already set,” Shaq said. “He done already passed up legends; he done already made his mark — he has three rings. His mentality now is probably: I want to get four before Steph [Curry] does. That’s probably his mentality now. But if I was him, I wouldn’t be trying to get four, five and six because it ain’t going to matter. It’s just something else to talk about, something else to add to the pages. He’s a legend, talked about as who is the best between he and Michael Jordan, so he’s set.”
It’s an interesting take from someone who certainly knows a thing or two about rings, legacies, and on-court rivalries. It doesn’t sound like James is going to be taking Shaq’s advice, as everything we’ve heard about potential destinations would indicate that James will be looking for situations where he’ll have the best shot at winning more titles.
