Media

Shaquille O’Neal Sadly Shares He Won’t Watch 2020 Hall of Fame Ceremony Due to Kobe Bryant’s Death

Published by
Omar Guerrero

A still heartbroken Shaquille O’Neal shared recently that he will not watch the upcoming 2020 Hall of Fame ceremony that will add Kobe Bryant to a list of basketball luminaries.

O’Neal, a former Los Angeles Lakers star, was deeply hurt upon learning of his former teammate’s untimely death on Jan. 26 of this year.

The big man was a guest on the “Sports Like a Boss with Holly McPeak & Anne Marie Anderson,” where he shared about his time playing with Bryant as a member of the Purple and Gold.

“We will always be connected, whether people think we like each other or not,” O’Neal said about Bryant. “It doesn’t matter. We will always be connected. We were the most competitive, most enigmatic, most controversial, most dominant one-two punch ever created. But, I won’t even watch the Hall of Fame ceremony this year. I don’t want to see pictures and video of him. I don’t. … I never thought something like this would ever happen.”

Though O’Neal and Bryant butted heads during their time together with the Lakers, the two superstars produced three titles in succession for the franchise from 2000 to 2002.

After a bitter falling out between the two, it took years before they patched up their differences.

Bryant had five championships during his illustrious career. O’Neal, on the other hand, had four titles before he retired. They shared a special moment at the All-Star Game when they were named co-MVPs in 2009.

During Bryant’s memorial last February, O’Neal gave an emotional speech sprinkled with his typical humor, giving fans one of the event’s most memorable moments.

Bryant will be inducted into the Hall of Fame later this year along with basketball greats Kevin Garnett, Tim Duncan and others.

The 2020 Hall of Fame ceremony will take place on Aug. 29, in Springfield, Massachusetts.

Omar Guerrero

Omar is a former writer for King James Gospel. The very first team he rooted for was the Showtime Lakers and his favorite player back then was James Worthy. Seeing the Purple and Gold win back-to-back championships in the '80s made him a basketball junkie for life. He has witnessed and celebrated every Lakers championship since then and is now looking forward to a new era of basketball in Tinseltown led by LeBron James.

Published by
Omar Guerrero

Recent Posts

Lakers insider says Jaxson Hayes will have suitors that will try to poach him in free agency

Los Angeles Lakers big man Jaxson Hayes hasn't suited up for the storied franchise since…

March 16, 2025

Antoine Walker says LeBron wasn’t actually ‘unguardable’ in pickup game with MJ: ‘That wasn’t the case’

Earlier this year, Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James recounted a story about playing in…

March 15, 2025

Dorian Finney-Smith says he noticed JJ Redick was ‘a little off’: ‘All the greats are a little bit off’

Before veteran forward Dorian Finney-Smith was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers and began playing…

March 14, 2025

D-Wade says LeBron ‘put some extra heat’ on Bronny by saying he was better than some NBA players

Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James and ESPN star Stephen A. Smith have been in…

March 14, 2025

Skip Bayless destroys Luka’s impact without LeBron: ‘Most of his points felt like empty calories’

Los Angeles Lakers star Luka Doncic had some big numbers on Thursday against the Milwaukee…

March 14, 2025

Shaq says LeBron is trying to set records that will never be broken: ‘I know what he’s doing’

Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James set another NBA record recently. In the team's March 4 blowout…

March 13, 2025