"Big brother, little brother; My best friend" - Shaquille O'Neal divulges his favorite memory of former teammate Kobe Bryant
Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O'Neal won three NBA championships with the LA Lakers from 2000 to 2002. The unstoppable pair were one of the greatest duos in league history. Two years after Bryant passed away, O'Neal shared his favorite memories of his late good friend and teammate.
O'Neal recently joined Bleacher Report AMA to answer fan questions about his NBA career, Kobe Bryant, Dwyane Wade and his life as DJ DIESEL. One of the questions asked was what was his favorite memory of the late Bryant, who died in a helicopter crash on January 26, 2020 along with his daughter Gianna and seven others.
"We were able to push each other. Big brother, little brother. My best friend. We were able to push each other to the maximum commitment that gave us the ability to get 3 out of 4, so I would never have done anything differently," O'Neal said.
#OTD in 2009, Shaq and Kobe reunited in the #NBAAllStar Game and were named co-MVPs 🏆 https://t.co/nGUfhOhhOq
Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant played together for eight seasons, from 1996 to 2004. They went to the NBA Finals four times, winning three straight championships between 2000 and 2002 under head coach Phil Jackson. O'Neal was in his prime, while Bryant was just starting to become the great player he would become.
After losing to the Detroit Pistons in the 2004 NBA Finals, O'Neal asked for a trade, and was dealt to the Miami Heat. He went on to win his fourth NBA title in 2006, while Bryant won two more, in 2009 and 2010. The former teammates had a beef after O'Neal's trade, but reconciled before Bryant's tragic death in 2020.
Shaquille O'Neal remembers Kobe Bryant on the latter's second death anniversary
Kobe Bryant was remembered on January 26 on the second anniversary of his untimely death. In an interview with FOX 11 Los Angeles, Shaquille O'Neal opened up about his friend and how he envisioned growing old with Bryant.
"Someone did a mockup of 70-year-old Kobe and 75-year-old me, and I actually had it blown up, and I actually l have that picture in my house, and I look at it every day. If I had one wish, I wish that he was still here, and we could possibly have that moment," O'Neal said.
The careers of O'Neal and Bryant will always be intertwined. They won three NBA championships together, becoming one of the greatest duos the basketball world has ever seen.
A tragedy took Bryant's life, his daughter's and seven others, but the world will never forget them. Basketball fans will always have fond memories of the late 'Black Mamba'.