Time for a little honesty here: if you had told me 10 years ago that I would be writing a piece celebrating Shaquille O’Neal’s time in Lakers colors, I probably would have laughed, and then used some colorful language to underscore how unlikely it was.
The wounds were just too fresh back then for things to be seen clearly.
After O’Neal was traded to the Miami Heat, he took on the villain role for many Lakers fans, myself included. A former ally had turned into a bitter enemy, and the animosity was very real. Still, here we are.