09-05-2025
Gary Vitti on how much greater Shaquille O'Neal could've been
Gary Vitti on how much greater Shaquille O'Neal could've been
Shaquille O'Neal was one of the most dominant big men to ever play in the NBA, and most of his prime years came with the Los Angeles Lakers. In eight seasons with them, he averaged 27.0 points,11.8 rebounds and 2.5 blocks a game, and along with the late great Kobe Bryant, he led them to three straight championships in the early 2000s.
During the 1999-2000 season, O'Neal put up 29.7 points, 13.6 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 3.0 blocks per game and won his first and only regular-season MVP award. When comparing eras, it was quite possibly the greatest individual season anyone has ever had in the history of basketball.
But there is also a feeling that he left a lot on the table and that he could've had several seasons in a row that would've been as dominant as that 1999-2000 campaign. Former longtime Lakers athletic trainer Gary Vitti saw O'Neal up close and personal, and he said during an episode of "Fair Game" with Kristine Leahy that the big man was an underachiever and could've been an even greater player than he was.
"My dream for Shaq was for him to be the best of all time," Vitti said. "That wasn't his dream. That's a problem when you want something from someone more than they want for themselves.
"... He could've been the greatest of all time."
Instead, said Vitti, O'Neal wanted to "inspire young people to follow their dreams," and indeed, O'Neal has done plenty off the court to help children and the underprivileged. But when it came to his craft, he was notoriously lazy, and there was a sense that, attitude-wise, he simply wasn't as serious or focused as many of the other all-time greats.
Still, O'Neal was and is a legend, and he has nothing to feel bad about when it comes to his accomplishments. Along with Bryant, he restored Lakers mystique at a time when the franchise was struggling years after Magic Johnson's stunning retirement. The two transformed the franchise from one that was lucky to have one great dynastic era into one that became the gold standard of basketball.
