Shaq Played the Three Greatest Finals in a Row, Why Don’t We Care?

The NBA Finals can make or break a player's legacy. Players who rise to the occasion at the highest level of the sport are immortalized in history, while players who flounder on the biggest stage are also immortalized in history, (for all the wrong reasons, i.e Chris Paul, Karl Malone, Patrick Ewing). Fair or not, the NBA Finals define your career as an all-time great. Players like Charles Barkley and Elgin Baylor get overlooked due to a lack of Finals success. While players like Dirk Nowitzki are remembered as heroes to their city, or even the NBA (In the case of Dirk), for just one great Finals performance. That’s why it surprises me that NBA fans rarely talk about Shaquille O’Neal’s three-peat run with the Lakers, and how great it truly was.

During the Lakers three peat, Shaq averaged 35.9 points, 15.2 rebounds, and 2.9 blocks per game on all time shooting efficiency. Not to mention he won three obvious Finals MVPs. Breaking down his stats year by year (via Basketball Reference), it's clear that his performances were nothing short of remarkable. 

*year is beginning of each season

Shaq's incredible scoring ability was on full display during his peak. His points per game average was only five points shy of Michael Jordan's all-time Finals record of 41 points in the 1993 Finals. Yet, Shaq's true shooting percentage was five points higher than Jordan's. Making him both an all-time volume scorer and efficient performer. His shooting percentage over the three Finals would rank sixth all-time in Finals performances, behind two of Shaq's own performances in the 2003-04 and 1999-2000 Finals.

At this point in Shaquille O’Neal’s Career, he was unstoppable. He weighed a light 340 pounds his first year with the Lakers. Despite what his weight would indicate, Shaq played like a 240-pound wing, he would fly around the hardwood, often being the first man down the court in transition. He was a fantastic post scorer with an arsenal of moves and a surprisingly soft touch around the rim. Then there was his power, O’Neal’ signature trait. At his weight and height, Shaq could simply move his opponent out of the way before slamming it down in his face. Shaq’s violent and never-before-seen strength would lead to the NBA changing the construction of the entire basket and backboard because he kept destroying them.

So how did you stop this kind of athlete, one that could beat you with any move in the book. Well, you didn’t. Teams simply began fouling Shaq in halfcourt sets. To say Shaquille O’Neal was a below-average free throw shooter would be generous, but so would saying Hack-A-Shaq was a good strategy. Firstly, while Shaq shot a horrible 52% during the 2000-2002 NBA seasons, it was still better than league average offense from the halfcourt set. Teams scored 1 point per position during the mentioned seasons, less than the average points expected at 52% free throw shooting. To call intentionally giving better than league average offense while getting into foul trouble a win, shows Shaq’s dominance.

Shaquille O’Neal’s rebounding was also noteworthy, with his 15.2 putting him in competition with some of the best glass cleaners in history. To put his numbers into context, Shaquille O’Neal averaged almost 50% more rebounds than Dennis Rodman did in his Finals career. Shaq’s average of 15.2 would put him 5th all time in rebounds per game, and the only player to put those kinds of numbers up past the year 1980. These rebounds were also huge for his offensive production with 78 of his 228 rebounds being on the offensive glass (5.1 a game). This led to many second chance opportunities for his team, which the lakers normally converted. This level of offensive rebounding (when extrapolated) would make him the all-time leader in offensive rebounds per game.

These rebounds also helped the Laker's defence, Shaq's tremendous rebounding killed the opposing offense's opportunities to score second-chance points. His size allowed him to box out, and his strength let him hold his position against the large centers of the 90s and early 2000s. He owned the opposing center in his Finals matches. Shaq’s Finals matchups averaged just 7 rebounds per game (4, 12 and 5.8 series averages). This killed opposing teams' chances of scoring extra points, which led to the Laker's incredible defensive metrics.

While Shaq was no Magic Johnson on the court, he was a great passer during his time with the Lakers. While Shaquille O’Neil’s assist average of 3.5 a game during his Finals stretch is by no means incredible. His passing routinely enabled a great Lakers offense. His gravity and clear advantage over any single defender led to open threes and easy cuts to the basket, usually by Kobe Bryant, Rick Fox, and Derek Fisher. He also routinely passed out of double teams, which often forced opponents to scramble, leading to wide-open shots created by Shaq’s unselfish passing.

An example of this passing on display would be in game two of the 2001 NBA Finals against the Sixers. The Sixers beat the Lakers in game one of the Finals due to an Allen Iverson 48-point explosion. Despite this win, the Sixers had no answer for Shaq. He scored 44 points with 20 rebounds. To contain O'Neil, the Sixers doubled Shaq every time he got the ball in the post. A critical mistake which led to one of the best Finals performances of all time. Shaq posted a stat line of 28/20/9 with 8 blocks. Almost a quadruple-double in the Finals. His passing led all players in assists, leading the Lakers to a nine-point win in game two, before eventually closing out the series in five games.

While Shaq's finest attribute during his peak was his offense, his defence was nothing to scoff at. His defensive rating over the three years (Playoffs and Regular season) put him as the 22nd-best defender in the stretch. Shaq’s defensive rating of 98 puts him in elite status and only 3 points away from all-time great defensive players like Hakeem and Mutombo. Shaq even placed third in defensive rating in 2000, with only teammates Tim Duncan (the leader in career all defensive teams) and David Robinson ahead of him (how’s that for a starting frontcourt!). It's also noteworthy how strong Shaquille O'Neal's rim protection was during this stretch. He blocked an incredible 3 shots a game during his Finals stretch. His blocks per game in those Finals place him in the 96th percentile of shot blockers. Shaq put up elite defensive metrics while simultaneously being the most dominating and dangerous offensive threat in the league.

When comparing Shaq's Finals performance in 2001 (His worst Finals), to other all-time Finals performances, it's evident he was an all-time performer.

His stats in almost all categories are on par or better than his competition. His blocks, scoring and efficiency also make him stand out. Another factor in the argument for Shaq’s greatness was the matchup they had in the Finals. During James’, Jordan’s and Giannis' Finals, their primary matchups were Andre Iguodala, Joe Dumars, and Deandre Ayton. All of these players are good to great defenders. But nothing close to Dikembe Mutombo-Shaq's defender during the 2001 Finals. Mutombo won four DPOY awards during his career, tying him with Ben Wallace for the most of all time. Despite Mutombo’s best effort, Shaq still averaged 33 a game on 57% efficiency. Showing his dominance over any player of his era.

Shaq played the three greatest Finals of all time. It’s the title of this whole thing, but what's the point. While writing this, a few things were clear to me. First off, I under apricated how good early 2000s Jason Kidd was, check out his Basketball Reference page later. But more importantly, it was astonishing how little some championships mean for certain players' legacies.

The phrase, a championship is a championship, is narratively and factually untrue. I already mentioned Dirk Nowitzki at the beginning and how much his championship meant for his legacy. But a player I didn't consider as much was Giannis Antetokounmpo. If he had never won his ring, where would he rank all time? I can’t answer this, but it’s a fun thing to think about (especially after his first-round exit to the eighth-seed Miami Heat).

Would Shaq losing the Finals in 2006 or Kobe losing in 2009 or 2010 make a difference in their legacies? Probably, but clearly not on the same level as Dirk or Giannis. So, I pose the question, why don't we care about Shaq’s three-peat championship run as much as we care about Dirk’s run or Giannis’.

Shaq owned the NBA during the 2000 to 2002 seasons. Sadly, due to some revisionist history, many claim Kobe was 1-B to Shaq’s 1-A. This simply is untrue, take one look at their stats over these years, and it becomes clear Kobe was not half the player Shaq was. Kobe averaged 15 points a game during his first Finals, one point more than Fred VanVleet did in his Finals (2019). I don’t understand where this narrative came from (that’s a lie; Kobe fanlings), but Shaq owned the league. Kobe Bryant was simply the bat boy to Shaq’s Superman.

Legacies are defined by narratives, and Shaq’s Finals, as great as they were, were narratively bland. The Lakers dominated every Finals they played in. During the three-year peak, many times their conference Finals felt more challenging than the Finals itself. This domination led to a lack of narratives and discourse during these Finals. Another factor hurting Shaq’s legacy was a lack of iconic games during his run. Mostly, because of his lack of tight Finals series.

Narratives shouldn’t define careers, but unfortunately, they do. Be it Lebron and his 4-6 Finals record or Chris Paul’s less-than-stellar game seven history. So, when greatness truly does transpire, we should appreciate it. Shaq was great, better than most people give him credit for. His legacy will never reach that of Lebron or Jordan, but for my money, he was generational and dominant to levels no one else could reach. That is better than any narrative, or any legacy-defining play. Shaq at his best was better than anyone else, and we should give him credit for it.