Michael Jordan would have forced Shaquille O'Neal to stay on the Lakers despite Kobe Bryant beef- “Big men are hard to find”
During the Kobe Bryant-Shaquille O'Neal era, the LA Lakers achieved an iconic three-peat by winning the NBA Championship in 2000, 2001, and 2002. However, despite their success, Bryant and O'Neal had ongoing issues that ultimately led to the Lakers trading O'Neal to the Miami Heat in 2004. This decision came after the Lakers' loss to the Detroit Pistons in the NBA Finals.
In a 2005 interview with Cigar Aficionado's Marvin R. Shanken, Michael Jordan shared his perspective on the trade.
"I would have never gotten rid of Shaq [O'Neal]. It's as simple as that. You've got three championships with a big man, and big men are hard to find. Not only that, you have the most dominant big man in the game today. You don't just send him away because you got some problems."
While Michael Jordan wasn't in the locker room with Bryant and O'Neal, his comments still have value given Jordan's ability to deal with Dennis Rodman's troublesome personality.
Michael Jordan pointed out that the issue couldn't have been one person for the Lakers, but rather both of them.
"But you can't blame one guy. It's a combination of both of them. If you've got success in your house, you find a way to manage so that everybody prospers and everybody is viewed as champion. Personalities got involved after they'd had some success. It becomes about individuals—individual goals that they wanted to achieve."
It is hard to tell who the issue was but there are several lengthy explanations about what might've happened.
Regardless of the specifics, Jordan firmly believed that if he were in Bryant's position, he would not have let O'Neal leave.
Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O'Neal were chasing individual success
Jordan attributed the issues to both players chasing individual success rather than prioritizing team unity. Jordan believed that there was no point in the two of them trying to prove their individual games when they were having success together. Here is what Jordan said:
"Be it Kobe leading the league in scoring and carrying the team by himself, or Shaq proving he can win without Kobe. What's the purpose of changing if you've got the right mixture that's working? Give me a seven-footer, and I'd probably still be playing right now."
Following O'Neal's departure from LA, the Lakers missed the playoffs for the first time in ten years. Bryant eventually did win two championships though in 2009 and 2010. O'Neal, on the other hand, won with the Heat in 2006 where he found instant success.
While both players achieved individual success, Jordan's stance remains valid. There seemed to be no reason for Bryant and O'Neal to separate. Jordan argued that their focus should have been on sustaining their winning formula together. Lakers fans share a similar sentiment, acknowledging that the breakup deprived them of witnessing the potential number of championships Bryant and O'Neal could have won together.