Shaquille O'Neal
Shaquille Rashaun O'Neal (born March 6, 1972 in Newark, New Jersey) is the one of the most dominant basketball players today and currently plays for the Miami Heat. His second name means "Little Warrior". At 7'1", 365 pounds (2.16 m, 165 kg), he led the Los Angeles Lakers to three NBA Finals victories in a row (2000, 2001, 2002). He was selected as the Finals MVP for each of his victories, trailing only Guard Rick Barry for second All-Time Among other centers in NBA history, he has the highest scoring average in the Finals. He was also voted as the 1999-2000 Most Valuable Player for the regular season by the media, almost becoming the first unanimous MVP in NBA history. He was also voted six times for the All-NBA First Team selection (1997-98, 1999-2000, 2000-01, 2001-02, 2002-03, 2003-04). He was selected in 1996 as one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History, He was only 24 years old at that time, the youngest player to achieve that honor. He has improved into one of the leagues primary defenders in the past few years, receiving All-NBA-Defensive honors in 1999-2000, 2000-01 and 2002-03. He has been voted in and played in every All-Star game since the first year he had entered the NBA (1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004). In 1999, the only season O'Neal did not play in an All-Star game, there was no All-Star game because the NBA's owners had locked out the players. He was named All-Star-MVP in 2000 and 2004
O'Neal's game is based around his massive frame, and an athleticism and agility befitting a much smaller player. Lacking a jump shot, he scores most of his points with dunks, said to be unstoppable at the low block. Analysts say O´Neal is the most unguardable player in the past three decades and often compare him to the legendary Wilt Chamberlain. O'Neal is also an outstanding rebounder at both ends of the court, and a good shot-blocker. O'Neal does have a famous weakness: he is a very poor free-throw shooter, with a free throw percentage of around 50% - a level below most amateur club players. He virtually never attempts three-point shots, but has no real need to do so. He hit one against the Milwaukee Bucks back in 1996.
O'Neal lived a good part of his childhood in Germany, where his father was stationed as a military officer. It was while there that he learned to play basketball.
As a young man, he attended Louisiana State University, where he first became known by many basketball fans around the globe. In 1992 he was chosen by the Orlando Magic, and he helped the team to 41 wins that year, missing the playoffs by one game. He further raised his fame that year with two backboard-shattering dunks, both on national TV: The first came against the Phoenix Suns on NBC and the other against the New Jersey Nets on TNT.
In the 1993-94 season, Shaq helped the Magic to their first playoff berth ever, and he also debuted in Hollywood, and released a rap CD, named Shaq Diesel. The movie Blue Chips, alongside teammate Anfernee Hardaway and Nick Nolte, marked his Hollywood debut.
In 1994-1995, O'Neal and Hardaway helped their team reach the NBA Finals, but they were swept in four games by Hakeem Olajuwon, Kenny Smith, and the rest of the Houston Rockets.
After the 1995-1996 season, Shaq, asking for 120 million dollars over seven years, left Orlando to join the Los Angeles Lakers.
During the winter of 2002-2003, O'Neal became involved in a controversy when it was revealed that, while being interviewed by a Fox TV reporter the previous June 28, he said: "Tell Yao Ming, 'Ching chong yang wah ah soh,'" and making simulated kung fu gestures while uttering the words. The incident received scant attention at the time, but when an audio clipping of it was replayed several times by Fox Sports Radio on two consecutive days in mid-December, 2002 a media firestorm erupted, with many Asian-American advocacy groups demanding that O'Neal apologize. Not only did he do so, but several months later he even appeared with Yao in a telethon on Chinese television to raise money for victims of the SARS epidemic.
In 2004, following a NBA Finals loss to the Detroit Pistons, O'Neal said that he would not return to the Lakers and asked to be traded. On July 14, he was officially traded to the Miami Heat for Caron Butler, Lamar Odom, Brian Grant and a first-round draft pick.
In addition to cameo appearances, Shaq has made it to the big screen in "Blue Chips" (1994) with Nick Nolte, "Kazaam" (1996) and "Steel" (1997).
