"To me mental toughness means you can take your mind someplace else" - Shaquille O'Neal shares an inspiring video of Kobe Bryant speaking about mental strength
Four-time NBA champion Shaquille O'Neal took to his Instagram account earlier today to share some words of wisdom. Shaq shared a reel in which the late Kobe Bryant described his views on what mental toughness meant to him.
Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant were teammates for eight seasons with the LA Lakers. The duo won three championships together before their fall-out led to Shaq being traded to the Miami Heat.
Kobe defines Mental Toughness https://t.co/SjfTOn12Mk
In his recent interviews, Shaq has shown nothing but admiration for the legendary Kobe. Bryant continues to be an inspiration for NBA players even to this day and certainly taught a few things to big Shaq as well. In the video shared by Shaquille O’Neal, Kobe Bryant delves into mental toughness, saying:
“Mental toughness means when you’re going through a really tough time, your body is sore [or] whatever the case maybe – I can’t get to this particular thing, right?” Kobe adds, “To me being mentally tough means, you can take your mind someplace else. And concentrate on that other thing. To the point that the thing that was bothering you, is no longer a focus and you don’t feel it anymore.”
Those are some words to live by and Shaquille O'Neal knows that better than anyone else. Having been a teammate to Kobe, Shaq got to see first-hand the Mamba's mentality. Shaq had nothing but words of praise for his former teammate.
Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant shared a special relationship
The relationship began when both Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant were brought to the Los Angeles Lakers before the start of the 1996-97 season. In the recent unveiling of the NBA’s 75th Anniversary team, O'Neal shared a story from the day he signed his Lakers contract. Shaq met with Jerry West to formalize the contract and recollected what he was told after signing. Jerry West said:
“Look, I’m getting a kid named Kobe Bryant and you guys gonna win multiple championships.”
Since then, the duo have put up some historic nights for the LA Lakers. Their first championship came in the 1999-00 season, when Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant created an iconic alley-oop play in the Western Conference Finals against the Portland Trail Blazers.
The Lakers won the championship after beating the Indiana Pacers in six games in the 2000 NBA Finals.
There was an ongoing feud between the two as they both wanted to be the Lakers’ “main guy”. Shaquille O'Neal felt Kobe was selfish and even touched upon the subject with the media. After winning two more championships in the 2000-01 and 2001-02 seasons, the feud went on to affect their 2003-04 campaign.
The feud mostly sprung out of two alpha-males not willing to communicate as teammates should. Eventually, the Lakers were forced to move Shaquille O'Neal to the Miami Heat, as Kobe Bryant signed a long-term extension.
An NBA Christmas Day Classic!
Shaq vs Kobe for the first time since parting ways...
Shaq - 24 pts, 11 rebs, 3 blks
Kobe - 42 pts, 6 ast, 3 rebs https://t.co/O3S2PlPakK
The two of them often met on opposing sides of the floor and those match-ups were always electric. Shaq’s Heat faced Kobe’s Lakers on the following Christmas Day match-up, registering the highest-rated regular-season NBA game since 1998, back then.
Looking back in hindsight, Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant achieved greatness together; completing a three-peat from 2000-2003. Before their respective careers ended, they settled their issues and were on good terms as well.
The late Kobe Bryant will always hold a special place in Shaquille O’Neal’s life – both on and off the court.