“We beat Mike, we straight” – Shaquille O'Neal once took blame for Orlando Magic’s 1995 Finals debacle
Shaquille O'Neal is a storyteller who has kept NBA fans captivated for years with his anecdotes from the NBA. While most stories do feature him as the hero, there's one from 1995 that has him surely set as a villain in Orlando.
In 1995, the Orlando Magic made a surprising run to the NBA Finals, spearheaded by O'Neal and Penny Hardaway. However, despite beating the favorites - the Chicago Bulls, Shaquille O'Neal's Magic met their match at the hands of Hakeem Olajuwon and the Houston Rockets.
While dismissed in history as a tough series where the experienced team taught the loud upstarts a lesson, there may have been more behind why the Magic lost the series.
On All The Smoke, Shaquille O'Neal admitted to having instilled a mentality in his team after beating Michael Jordan and his Bulls, that may have led to their Finals collapse to the Rockets.
"That was my fault we lost. As a leader, I didn't lead. After we beat the Bulls, I let up. 'We beat Mike, we straight.' We played in Houston before, Hakeem's gonna get 27. And we had 8 days off. Me and D-Scott were doing stuff we weren't supposed to be doing" said O'Neal when asked about the 1995 NBA Finals.
Beating the Bulls with Michael Jordan was something that hadn't been done in years. The young guns at Orlando certainly believed the job was done. They didn't anticipate their dream collapsing at the hands of "The Dream" after His Airness was dealt with.
"The basketball gods paid me back," stated Shaquille O'Neal about how things transpired in 1995.
Basketball is religion for most associated with the NBA, and the gods certainly show their powers when granted the opportunity, it seems. At least, Shaquille O'Neal believes so.
During Today's interview, O'Neal gave more details about the things they weren't supposed to be doing before an NBA Final that they did as a collective.
“So we beat them [the Bulls], I’m partying like a mug. I have a 60,000 square foot house, I’m bringing people over; cause in my mind I already had the championship won. But, you broke the major rule, the basketball gods paid me back, very nicely. We already had a mini-parade at Disney" recalled O'Neal about how partying affected the Magic's NBA championship hopes.
O'Neal made up for his personal loss by winning championships in Los Angeles and Miami. But the Orlando Magic still remain ringless, and for the fans, hearing O'Neal talk about what transpired is bound to hurt a lot.