Watch: When rookie Shaquille O’Neal dominated the NBA in 1992-93 in his first week, winning Player of the Week award: “I had a pretty good week”

There has never been a player in the NBA like Shaquille O’Neal. The 7-foot 1 center from LSU made his NBA debut 30 years ago. O’Neal was the No. 1 overall pick in the 1992 NBA draft and was selected by the Orlando Magic.

After winning the Player of the Week in his first week in the NBA, a 20-year-old O'Neal was invited by Arsenio Hall on his show. He said:

"I had a pretty good week."

"I had a pretty good week"
@Shaq talks to Arsenio Hall about winning Player of the Week in his 1st week in the league

12 PTS, 18 REB, 3 BLK
22 PTS, 15 REB, 4 BLK
35 PTS, 13 REB, 3 BLK
31 PTS, 21 REB, 4 BLK

https://t.co/wLDfMX5Wu9

O’Neal dominated the remainder of the season and was named Rookie of The Year. He also played in his first All-Star game in his rookie season. It's safe to say that the NBA was not prepared to handle a young Shaquille O’Neal.

The M.D.E. made his NBA debut 30 years ago today!

Rookie Shaq won Player of the Week his 1st week in the league, started in the All-Star game, was named Rookie Of The Year & was 7th in MVP voting.
https://t.co/aPgNdLpZUl

O'Neal averaged 25.0 points, 16.75 rebounds and 3.5 blocks per game in his first week in the NBA. No one could stop a young hungry O’Neal. His presence led to the Magic improving their win total by 20 games once O’Neal joined the franchise.

Where does Shaquille O'Neal rank among All-Time Big Men?

While the game has become more guard oriented today, big men used to dominate both ends of the floor during and before O'Neal's era. Some of the most prominent names are Wilt Chamberlin, Bill Russell and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. When Shaquille O’Neal entered the league, it was already talent rich in the center position.

O'Neal entered the league with another talented center in Alonzo Mourning who was in the same draft class. The NBA already had Patrick Ewing, David Robinson, Hakeem Olajuwon and Brad Daughtery who were considered All-Star caliber players.

O’Neal is considered by many as the best player of his era, and his resume stacks up against anyone in NBA history. He was a 15-time All-Star and had 14 All-NBA. He won three straight Finals MVPs and was named league MVP in the 1999-2000 season. As a four-time champion, not many can stack up to his resume.

Shaq was an unstoppable offensive weapon, a top-notch rebounder and a fierce rim protector.

The Strength of O'Neal

O’Neal was stronger than most of his peers. That strength combined with his size made him unstoppable. His power was even a danger to rims and backboards. In a game against the Phoenix Suns in February 1993, the backboard collapsed after a fierce dunk by O'Neal. He caused the hydraulic system that holds up the backboard to delate and fall to the floor.

Shaq had another incident in New Jersey in April of the same year, where he broke the backboard.

Never forget when rookie Shaq brought down the backboard 😅 #OTD https://t.co/VKoHH4bcw2

O'Neal's dominance has caused some adjustments to how the NBA does it's business. The league made a rule that teams must have back-up goals for matches. This also caused the NBA to change the types of goals that they used.

The power of Shaq was one of a kind.