"You have grown not only in stature, but in talent": When Dale Brown sent Shaquille O'Neal a heartfelt letter after former LSU star's NBA debut season
NBA legend Shaquille O'Neal was one of the most dominant players in NBA history and was a key cog in the Lakers team that won three NBA championships alongside Kobe Bryant. Before he was an NBA superstar, O'Neal had an accomplished college basketball career playing for the LSU Tigers under coach Dale Brown.
Brown recruited Shaq and the pair shared a close relationship during his three-year career (1989-1992) in Baton Rouge, where he averaged 21.6 points on 61% shooting, 13.5 rebounds and 4.6 blocks before declaring for the NBA Draft.
Shaq was selected No. 1 by the Orlando Magic in the 1992 NBA Draft and went on to win the NBA Rookie of the Year in 1993. After his achievement, Brown sent him a letter, giving him heartfelt advice.
"Dear Shaquille, Congratulations on a great rookie year in the NBA," Brown wrote in June 1993. "I was so proud of you, and especially in the manner that you conducted yourself. I shall never forget our first meeting in the mountains of West Germany, when you were only 13 years old. You have grown not only in stature, but in talent, from that day you were cut from the high school team.
"Continue to work on improving your game and as you’ve heard a thousand times over and over again, while playing at LSU: Hard work pays off."
How Shaquille O'Neal was recruited by Dale Brown
During his childhood, Shaquille O'Neal traveled with his stepfather Phillip Harrison around U.S. Army bases and when he was 13 years old, he met LSU Tigers coach Dale Brown at a base in Germany.
O'Neal revealed during an in-house interview with LSU how their first interaction went.
"So Dale Brown is there, and all the top guys on the base that are really good players, they're sitting up front because they think they are going to get a scholarship," O'Neal said in Oct. "I'm sitting in the back, and I'm shy. I got a little stuttering problem.
"So after the thing was over, he was walking. I was like, 'Excuse me, Coach Brown, can you send me a program to strengthen my lower extremities?' and I wanted to sound smart like I'm college-bound. And he looked at me and said, 'How long have you been in the army, soldier?' I said, 'I'm not in the army; I'm 13, and he grabbed me like he found the biggest black diamond ever."
Shaquille O'Neal joined Brown in Baton Rouge from Robert Cole High School, Texas and went on to win two SEC Player of the Year awards and was a two-time All-American during his college basketball career.