The injury bug bites O'Neal again. He hyperextends his left knee, fracturing a
bone and partially tearing a ligament. The Lakers win only 16 of the 28 games he
misses.
Spring
1997
In his first season with the Lakers, O'Neal misses a total of 31 games due to
various injuries and ends the year averaging 26.2 points per game, his lowest
total since his rookie
year.
August
1997
Steel, O'Neal's third motion picture, comes out. The movie bombs in its
opening week, ranking 15th at the box office and bringing in less than $1
million.
February 10,
1998
In a loss to the Portland Trail Blazers, Shaq scores his 10,000th career
point.
Spring,
1998
For the second time in his career, O'Neal leads the NBA in field goal percentage
(.584). He is also elected to the All-NBA First
Team.
September,
1998
Shaq releases his fifth CD, Respect. It follows Shaq Diesel
(1993), Shaq-Fu: Da Return (1994), Best of Shaquille O'Neal
(1996) and You Can't Stop the Reign (1996). He tells Sports
Illustrated's Michael Silver in May 1999, "When you watch MTV, you can
tell all the musicians want to be athletes, and when you watch ESPN, you can
tell all the athletes want to rap. Remember, a lot of us came from the same
place."
Spring
1999
An embarrassing end to the season for O'Neal and the Lakers as the Spurs sweep
Los Angeles, 4-0 in the Western Conference semifinals. Shaq finishes the
campaign topping the NBA in field goal percentage (.576) for the third time and
is second in the league in scoring (26.3 points per
game).
December
1999
O'Neal, who has a reputation for being a big softie off the court shows his
generosity. The Lakers hold a "Secret Santa" grab bag with the
stipulation that the maximum a person could spend is $100. Shaq buys a $5,000
diamond Rolex for teammate Derek Fisher. "He doesn't believe in
cheap," Fisher tells
Newsweek.
December 15,
2000
It took longer than expected, but Shaquille graduates from LSU, earning his
bachelor of science degree in general studies with a minor in political science.
''I feel very secure," he says. "I can get a real job now.'' O'Neal,
who is excused from the Lakers game against Vancouver so he can attend his
commencement ceremony, turns serious, saying, ''It didn't seem right to me to be
telling kids to stay in school when I hadn't got my degree. Now I can tell them
stay in
school.''
February
2000
O'Neal becomes a father for the second time when his girlfriend gives birth to
son
Shareef.
February 13,
2000
After notching 22 points, nine rebounds and three blocks, O'Neal is named co-MVP
of the NBA All-Star game with Spurs' forward Tim
Duncan.
March 6,
2000
On his 28th birthday, O'Neal nets a career-high 61 points and pulls down 23
rebounds against the Los Angeles Clippers. Prior to the game, the Clippers had
denied O'Neal's request for a bunch of complimentary tickets. Following his
monster performance Shaq says, "Don't ever make me pay for
tickets."
May 10, 2000
The Lakers center takes home his first NBA Most Valuable Player award, having
received 99.2 percent of the votes -- the highest percentage since the honor's
inception in 1956. Shaq, the first Laker to be named MVP since Magic Johnson in
1990, tops the league in scoring (29.7) and field goal percentage (57.4), ranks
second in rebounding (13.6), and averages 3.03 blocks and a career-high 3.8
assists per game.
"The only person who can stop Shaquille O'Neal is Shaquille O'Neal, and
that hasn't happened this year," said Lakers forward Glen
Rice.
June 19, 2000
Shaq leads the Los Angeles Lakers to an NBA title with a 116-111 victory over
the Indiana Pacers in Game 6 of the Finals at the Staples Center. O'Neal scores
41 points in the clinching game, and his series averages of 38.0 points and 16.6
rebounds make him the unanimous choice for Finals
MVP.
October 13,
2000
A happy day in Laker land as the club and O'Neal agree to a contract extension
at maximum terms of three years and $88.5 million. The extension means Shaq, who
four months before had led the Lakers to their first NBA championship in 12
years, is under contract for six more seasons. O'Neal is modest, saying,
"I'm not really a big spender. I can get a lot of Krispy Kreme Doughnuts.
The way I'm going to celebrate is I'm going to go get all my teammates gifts.
Most of them said they wanted Rolexes. So I'm about to go to the mall and hook
them up, because without them none of this would be
possible."
December
2000
The euphoria from winning the title wears off. O'Neal and fellow superstar Kobe
Bryant engage in a feud over shot attempts. Following a 115-78 drubbing by the
Phoenix Suns in which Bryant outscored the superstar center, 38-18, Shaq asks to
be traded. Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak ignores the
request.
February 13,
2001
O'Neal, who missed the previous six games with a strained right arch, returns to
action. He dominates in the Lakers' 113-110 win at New Jersey, finishing with 32
points, 14 rebounds, six assists and five
blocks.
April 17,
2001
The Lakers turn things around and O'Neal and Bryant get past their squabbling.
Los Angeles' 108-91 trouncing of Denver in the regular season finale is the
team's eighth victory in a row. O'Neal leads the club in scoring and rebounding
in each of the wins, averaging 34 points and 12.6
rebounds.
May 8,
2001
In the Lakers' second-round series against the Sacramento Kings, O'Neal becomes
the first player in NBA history to have 40-point, 20-rebound performances in
back-to-back playoff games. "I had to guard the big fella and I'm probably
100 pounds lighter," Chris Webber said after the game. "He's gonna do
what he's gonna do
anyway."
June 15,
2001
It's back-to-back championships and a place in the history books for O'Neal and
Co. With a 108-96 win over the Philadelphia 76ers in Game 5 of the Finals, the
Lakers clinch the series four games to one, concluding the best ever postseason
for an NBA team. Los Angeles tears through the playoffs, posting a 15-1 record
and becoming the only NBA club to go undefeated on the road in postseason
play.
For the second straight season, Shaq is named Finals MVP, averaging 33.0 points,
15.8 rebounds and 5.2 assists in the
Finals.
"I'm happy. I'm also greedy," O'Neal said following the win. "I'm
going to take a week off, come back and work out, try to get leaner and meaner
and get another one next year."
rebounds.
January 12, 2002
Fed up with taking cheap fouls, O'Neal snaps after getting bumped hard by Charles Oakley and Brad Miller of the Chicago Bulls. Shaq throws two punches at Miller and the pair becomes entangled in a melee that ends up in the stands. O'Neal is slapped with a three-game suspension and $15,000 fine. Oakley is suspended for two games while Miller is banned for one.
June 2, 2002
The Sacramento Kings give L.A. a scare in the Western Conference finals,
taking the back-to-back champs to a seventh game at Arco Arena. However, Shaq
puts the Lakers on his back and carries his club to its third straight NBA
Finals appearance. In the decisive game, O'Neal scores 35 points and grabs 13
rebounds. Surprisingly enough, Shaq nails 11 of 15 shots from the free-throw
line. For the series, the future Hall of Famer averages 30.3 points and 13.6
rebounds while shooting 65 percent from the charity stripe.
June 12, 2002
The Lakers complete a sweep of the New Jersey Nets to win their third consecutive NBA title. Shaq averages 36.3 points and 12.3 rebounds in the series and wins the Finals MVP award for the third year in a row, joining Michael Jordan as only players in NBA history to be recognized with the honor three straight times. O'Neal also sets records for most points in a four-game Finals series (145), most free throws made (45) and most free throws attempted (68).
December 26, 2002
O'Neal marries his longtime girlfriend, Shaunie Nelson, in front of friends and teammates during a private ceremony at the Beverly Hills Hotel. The couple is expecting a baby boy in May.
