Shaq became so accustomed to running the court that he felt lost when his skills began to fade.
The big man played well beyond his prime, and in his final season in 2010-11, he averaged just 9.2 points per game for the Boston Celtics.
In a new episode of JJ Redick's podcast, 'Old Man and Three', O'Neal opened up about the hardest part of his early years coming to an end.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T1wIVoxaWg
“Not being 'him',” she said. “'He' is 28/10. F****n' scored nine points in Boston. I felt like I was robbing people. I was so upset when he called me and said, 'Hey man, we owe you $1.50 [million].' I said f*****g keep it. End it. I don't get there to reach six points… I dominated for a long time, I didn't even think, 'Hey one day, it will pass.'
” … It started to hit me when I didn't make the All Star team. I was like 'oh I don't want to play,' but I'm like bro, I dominated the All Star game 12-13 years in a row. Now I don't even get f*****g votes. So that part was weird to me.”
Shaq added that his accomplishments were of little consolation to him at the time, because in his words, “he was destined to do more.”
At the height of his power, Shaq was incredibly dominant.
In his best season, he put up 29.7 points and 13.6 rebounds per game, winning the league MVP, Finals MVP and the championship.
It was the first of three consecutive wins he and Kobe Bryant had for the Lakers.
READ MORE: LeBron James Responds To Shaq Saying Players Aren't Afraid Of Him
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