The partnership of Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal in the Los Angeles Lakers was one of the most fruitful pairings in NBA history. Together with the Lakers, they were the most recent stars to win three straight years. However, their pairing ended as the two stars wanted to have their way.
Their former teammate, Derek Fisher, appeared as a guest at the “Podcast P with Paul George” show. During his appearance, he talked about how great the duo was. He also recalled the moment when the two alpha stars started their feud.
“We won the first title in 2000, and so I think that second year…in 2000, 2001, that’s when it really shifted a little bit to I think Kob really felt like he was bein’ asked to sacrifice a little too much in terms of what — again, you have to remember, Kob really saw himself and ultimately became one of the GOATs,” Fisher said. “Right? And so none of the guys on that list were the second guy. I mean, if you really go down the list of guys that we have the GOAT conversations about, I don’t know if there were many of those guys, if any, were the second guy.
“And so I think in ’01, Kob started to feel like, ‘In order for me to be the GOAT that I know I’m capable of accessin’ — I’m willin’ to put the time in. I’m willin’ to wake up at four in the mornin’, no sleep, train hard, play in every game, play through injuries, do everything to become one of the greatest players of all time. Why am I being asked to do less and be less when my teammate that is capable of just as much or more greatness isn’t maybe investing that much time, energy, et cetera?’
“And I think that was the year where it changed a little bit from healthy — some of the tension the great teams do need — to a little bit more like one guy is maybe standing in the way of the other. And so for the rest of us on the group, we just always made sure that both guys understood, ‘We’re not pickin’ a side, bro.’”
How great were Bryant and O’Neal during their time with the Lakers?
When the Lakers dynasty started, Bryant had just started to get his feel for the game. As a player coming out of high school, the 6-foot-6 guard needed time to develop his skills on both ends of the floor. During the three seasons where they had their run, the star guard averaged 25.4 points, 5.9 rebounds and 5.1 assists.
In addition to becoming the Lakers’ clutch player, the star frequently called his number when necessary.
O’Neal, on the other hand, was already a seasoned veteran at that time. The big man established himself as the most dominant force in the league, which made him a tough matchup against other big men. The former LSU star averaged 28.6 points, 12.4 rebounds and 2.6 blocks in their three-year run.
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Reign also writes NBA and WNBA news updates on Sportskeeda. He started as a feature writer for AirAlamo, an NBA website that covers the San Antonio Spurs. Some of his work can also be seen with Valley of the Suns, a Phoenix Suns-centric website, where he served as a contributing writer.
