Shaquille O’Neal once again starting buzz around the league in the off-season. And no, it’s not a rap song asking Lebron how his a$$ tastes after the NBA Finals.
Shaq went on Instagram and posted a photo of Lakers legends starting-five with Magic Johnson, Kobe Bryant, Elgin Baylor, Shaquille O’Neal, and Kareem Abdul Jabbar matched up against Derrick Rose, Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Dennis Rodman, and Horace Grant.
Hey Shaq, here’s some news: Michael Jordan is the greatest player on the planet to ever play this game. Teaming Jordan up with Pippen, Rose, and Rodman is just giving him three more reasons why Jordan would come out on top. Afterall, the combo of Jordan-Pippen-Rodman already set the NBA’s best record in league history with 72 wins in the 1995-1996 regular season. Oh, and just a bonus, Jordan and Pippen both went 6-6 in the NBA Finals.
The matchup Shaq presented was a bit unfair helping his case to pick the Lakers. Kareem and Shaq would over-tower Rodman and Grant. Hey Shaq, if we’re mentioning all-time greats, why isn’t Artis Gilmore suited up for the Bulls at Center? Instead, Shaq takes the easy way out picking Horace Grant.
Arti Gilmore is arguably one of the best centers in NBA history, I guess there’s a reason why Shaq decided to leave him out of his list. Also, as great as Kobe is, I’d take Jordan on both ends of the court shutting Kobe down while scoring buckets on his own. It’s no fluke Jordan won Defensive Player of the Year while averaging 35 points per game in the regular season. Also, there’s no better defender to put on Magic Johnson than Scottie Pippen himself. While Rose might struggle guarding Elgin Baylor who’s only two inches taller, Elgin Baylor for sure can not keep up with Rose’s foot-speed when he’s playing defense.
Sorry Shaq. It might be nice to cause some buzz on Instagram in the off-season, but you’re kidding yourself if you think Lakers legends can beat Bulls legends. Let’s face it, Shaq can’t beat Jordan even in his fantasy world.
