Shaquille O’Neal often uses social media platforms to share his opinions. The TNT analyst does so by sharing different facts and sometimes even memes. This time, Shaq shared a graphic displaying his head-to-head record against Michael Jordan. The post by Triston Solodolo Jones that O’Neal shared on his Instagram Story, broke down all the 21 games that the two legends faced off against each other.
Like most of his other rivals, Michael Jordan has won more games against Shaquille O’Neal. Out of the 21 matchups between the two, His Airness has won 12. While six of those wins came in the regular season, MJ also holds a 6-4 record against Shaq in the postseason.
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In these 21 contests, Michael Jordan has averaged more points (28.7-25.2), assists (4-3.4), and steals (2.4-0.8) than Shaquille O’Neal. Whereas, the Big Aristotle has recorded more rebounds (13.2-5.5) and blocks (1.9-1) than the 6ft 6” shooting guard.
The 1995 Eastern Conference Semifinals was an iconic clash between the two superstars. It was Jordan’s first season after coming back from his retirement. The Bulls star put up 31 points and 6.5 rebounds in the series. But, the 22-year-old Shaq managed to average 24.3 points and 13.2 rebounds to lead the Orlando Magic to a 4-2 series win.
Although Jordan lost the series against Shaq in 1995, he went on to repeat the 3-peat following from 1996-98.
Shaquille O’Neal claimed Michael Jordan was his GOAT
Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls did get their revenge for the 1995 playoff in the very next postseason. Shaquille O’Neal led the Orlando Magic to fight their way through the Eastern Conference Finals. Much to everyone’s surprise, the Bulls-Magic contest was far from being competitive. Backed by Jordan’s brilliance, the Illinois side swept the Magic.
Even though the Bulls went on to win three titles after the 1995 postseason, Shaq takes pride in the fact that he was the last man to defeat Michael Jordan in the postseason.
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“I take pride in being the last guy to beat Michael Jordan in a playoff situation,” Shaq claimed.
The Los Angeles Lakers legend has often given his take on the GOAT debate. While he keeps sharing graphics with different opinions, Shaq once spoke about the infamous topic on Logan Paul’s Impaulsive podcast.
According to the big man, even after LeBron James surpassed Kareem Abdul-Jabbar to become the NBA’s leading scorer, Michael Jordan was still his pick as the GOAT.
“I think the greatest player is Michael Jordan,” Shaq revealed.