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Way back before Shaquille O’Neal would tease Charles Barkley on the set of the “NBA on TNT” each week, the Hall of Famer also liked to have fun with some of his teammates.
O’Neal was notoriously known for being the comedian at each of his six stops across the NBA during his 19-year career. When it came to first-year players, O’Neal went out of his way to make sure they fulfilled their rookie duties.
Goran Dragic recently brought up one of his rookie duties during the 2008-09 season with the Phoenix Suns. Of course, O’Neal spent a season and a half in Phoenix and was one of the veterans to Dragic on that team. Dragic recently recalled the time O’Neal made him carry a keyboard while on the road on “The Woj Pod” with Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.
I have to admit he was great. He did take care of me. He had a lot of jokes. He was so funny. I always had to carry his keyboard when we were going away; it’s a big keyboard. From the bus to the plane, from the plane to the hotel. A few times, my room was next to his and I never heard him play. At the end of the season, I asked him, ‘Shaq, did you ever play on the keyboard?’ He said: ‘No.’ I said, ‘Why not?’ He said, ‘It doesn’t work. It’s broke.’ So, I had to carry this keyboard the whole season and that was my rookie duties. I’m really happy that I was a part of that team and to get to know Shaq. He is a character.
Full audio of Goran Dragic on Woj Pod: https://t.co/DT3LjEbKjv pic.twitter.com/0KcffCbjVt
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) August 15, 2020
O’Neal was named to his final All-Star team that season with the Suns after averaging 17.8 points, 8.4 rebounds and 1.4 blocks in 75 games played. He and Dragic helped the Suns to a 46-36 record but the team missed the playoffs that year.
Dragic played his rookie season 12 years ago but still remembers his rookie duties with O’Neal vividly, which goes to show how much of an impact O’Neal made on him.
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