The Golden Age of Basketball

Chapter 725 Shark Story
A few weeks before the draft, I met with NBA Commissioner David Stern, who asked me, "Where do you want to play?"

I don't want to create any conspiracy theories, but that's really what he asked me, and I told him, "Of course, I'll go wherever it's hottest."

Orlando is hot, and so am I.

In the 1992 NBA draft, I was incredibly popular, and everyone knew I would be selected first overall.

I also really want to play in the NBA, but I'm still considering staying at Louisiana State University for another year.

It's understandable that I have some concerns about the future.

I called Coach Dale Brown and told him I was leaving.

He said, “I know why you called. You’re right, you have to leave. They hurt you too badly in the college league, you should leave before you get hurt.”

Coach Brown's words relieved me, and then I asked, "But the NBA isn't necessarily safe either."

"No, the NBA is much safer, as long as you don't deliberately cause trouble. Besides, Forrest Gump doesn't fight much anymore."

Brown mentioned Forrest Gump, a name that is both exciting and terrifying.

This summer he will win his sixth championship trophy.

I practically grew up listening to his basketball legend as he completed his second three-peat.

I know his classic battles by heart, and I watched some of his matches live, which made me very excited.

In high school, I aspired to become a center like him, maximizing my strength.

"I won't let you down, coach. I will make my own way in the world."

I told Coach Brown that, and then quietly left the campus without telling anyone.

Back at the military base in San Antonio, I began contacting agents.

Coach Brown introduced me to Leonard Amato.

He handed me his business card and said, "Sign me, and I can give you everything you want. Let's start by making $25."

Honestly, I was terrified.

$25 was an astronomical figure for me at the time.

But two weeks later, in April 1992, I still hadn't been selected.

I earned a $100 million endorsement fee for a car brand.

I can't believe it, a million dollars!
I spent all that money in just two days.

The first thing I did was help my parents solve their debt problem and pay off their debts.

The second thing to do is to immediately go to a Mercedes-Benz dealership and buy a car.

When I got home, my dad asked, "Where's my car?"

I immediately bought him one too.

Then I thought, my mom should also have a Mercedes to drive around the city.

So, I bought three Mercedes-Benz cars within a week.

As a result, the Mercedes dealer called me and said I still owed them $9.

I said no way, I have a million dollars, not just enough, but much more.

Later I found out that of the $100 million endorsement fee, more than $40 was deducted for taxes.

I only received a little over $50, damn it.

I told my mother that I needed an accountant.

Of all the people I interviewed, I chose Lester Cornishper.

He is conservative and not very tactful, but very sincere. He doesn't boast that "I can handle everything," but instead says, "You can check my work at any time, and I will answer any questions you may have."

This attitude won my mother's approval, and I hired him.

He not only worked for me, but also represented some rappers.

I hired Lester, and that's how a wonderful friendship began.

Lester is my best friend, and he stops me when I have some crazy ideas.

When I buy too many cars and give too much money to my relatives, and things get out of control, he will stop me from going too far.

He was very successful and made a lot of money. I asked him how he did it.

He told me, "I bought an annuity insurance policy."

"What is that?" I asked.

"You pay a fixed premium to a life insurance company, and they will return it to you in the form of a fixed amount after many years."

This sounds like something I need.

When I started making a lot of money, when I had more money than I could spend, I invested most of it in insurance annuities.

I bought one for myself, my parents, and my siblings.

This meant that when I turned 40 (which seemed like a distant future at the time), I would receive a decent income.

To ensure I maintain a healthy financial situation for the rest of my life.

Thank you, Leicester.

Of course, Leicester sometimes worries about me.

I know, he said one shouldn't be too generous.

My thinking is that you can't take money with you when you die.

My parents don't ask for much; I just want them to be happy and enjoy their later years.

My siblings are the same; family is everything to me.

This doesn't mean that if a distant cousin from Georgia claims we have the same hairline, he'll appear on my payslip.

I'm not that stupid.

In May, the Orlando Magic indeed won the number one pick in the NBA draft lottery.

They're really hot, just as hot as I am.

As draft day approaches, Orlando fans are getting increasingly nervous.

Because I have never mentioned this city in public.

There are rumors that Leonard is trying to trade me to the Lakers.

Although Leonard might be happy to, that's not true; we didn't do that.

I'm a somewhat superstitious person, and I won't make any judgments until something good actually happens.

This includes being drafted first overall in the NBA draft and winning an NBA championship.

On draft night, the Orlando Magic invited more than 10,000 fans into the arena to announce that they had selected Shaquille O'Neal.

At the time, they had a special phone in the arena that connected to the draft venue. Pat Williams had to make the call in front of all the screaming fans and announce the team's selection.

But for some reason, the telephone transmission malfunctioned, and the call couldn't go through.

With the draft drawing ever closer and time running out, the management is sweating bullets with anxiety.

Finally, PR director Alex Martins called Stern on his cell phone to tell him that they had chosen Shaquille O'Neal.

When Stern announced the results, the entire city of Orlando went wild; that's the allure of the number one pick.

The scene was absolutely insane when I flew from Portland to Orlando.

I could hardly believe the warm welcome I received as soon as I got off the plane.

The airport terminal was packed with people, and the Magic's mascot was also there.

There was also a Dixieland band playing, and the two sides were filled with the most beautiful cheerleaders I've ever seen.

There were signs welcoming me to Orlando that said, 'Shaquille is number one.'

Another one read, 'Shaquille, it's time to end Forrest Gump's reign!'

The sign startled me, and I glanced at Pat Williams next to me.

Williams said, "We always need to set some grand ambitions."

"Moreover, Forrest Gump is a very forgiving person; he won't hold a grudge," he added.

At that time, Forrest Gump was truly in absolute control of the League, and his shadow was everywhere.

Ever since I decided to enter the NBA, comparisons between me and him have never stopped.

I know Forrest Gump is unparalleled; he may be the most perfect player in history.

And me? At that time, I was very insecure. I didn't even believe that I could become the top scorer.

I think Leitner and Mourning are more likely to be selected first than I am.

Back then, Laettner had it all: jump shot, footwork, rebounding, and mental advantage.

Many people consider him the successor to Forrest Gump, and they are indeed quite similar (but I later learned how different they are, both superficially and internally).

Even as my career was about to take off, I was still not 100% sure of my abilities.

At the end of the draft, Mourning was ranked second and Laettner was ranked third.

I thought they must have made a mistake.

Yes, I am more insecure than I appear.

Fortunately, the scouts and advertisers didn't think that way; they valued me highly.

When I first became the top draft pick, I signed a series of endorsement deals:

PepsiCo, $1300 million.

Reebok, $1500 million.

Kenner, $2000 million.

Spalding, $2500 million.

Leonard is smart; he put me in the middle of a competition between Coca-Cola and Pepsi, Reebok and Nike.

This maximizes my interests.

Actually, the person I most want to sign is Avia; I've always worn Forrest Gump's Skyscraper.

That's a great shoe for big men, and I buy every generation of it.

But Avia didn't offer me a contract, supposedly because they didn't want to anger Forrest Gump.

They already have Forrest Gump; they don't need a pedestrian who wants to challenge him.

Years later, however, I realized that this must be nonsense; Forrest Gump wasn't that petty.

Avia didn't contact me just for strategic reasons, nothing more.

I visited Reebok and Nike, and to be honest, there wasn't much difference between the two.

However, I wore a Reebok logo T-shirt when I went to Nike headquarters.

Leonard made me take it off, saying it would anger Phil Knight and he would go crazy.

Okay, fine, I'll take the blame. I'll choose Reebok. That summer, I decided to go to Los Angeles to improve myself; many players go to Los Angeles to train.

I ran into Hakeem Olajuwon at the arena, who was embroiled in trade rumors, and we went head-to-head.

He is a very good person with amazing skills and flexibility.

That year he was heading towards his peak, and soon we would be competing against each other in Florida.

It is said that Forrest Gump trained alone in a small gym, and nobody knew where he was.

He delivered an astonishing performance at the Summer Olympics, leading the weak Chinese team to the finals.

His performance in the inevitable defeat against the Dream Team was epic and breathtaking.

I wanted to go find him, but Leonard said that was impossible, saying that encountering Forrest Gump too early wouldn't be a good thing.

Then Leonard managed to get me tickets to Magic Johnson's games, as he often hosts small games at UCLA after retiring.

The magician was very kind to me, and we had a good chat.

He gave me some advice, but I didn't play very hard.

Because I don't want to reveal all my moves in such a small competition.

Aside from basketball, I had a great time in Los Angeles, participating in all sorts of activities; it was a truly vibrant place.

I became very popular in Los Angeles, and I kept running into Artélio Hall, who was hosting a very popular talk show.

He invited me to his show, and I said, "If I'm going to be on a show, I have to do something special. I don't want to just be like other athletes, talking about team gossip."

Most athletes lead very monotonous and boring lives, training, playing ball, training, playing ball.

I'm different. I enjoy life off the court, and I want to enjoy my life.

Hall said, "So what are your thoughts?"

I thought about it for a moment and said, "Maybe... I could try releasing an album? Rap, I could be the best rapper in the basketball world!"

I just said it casually at the time, but I never expected it to come true.

Lester knows many rappers and works for them, handling their business affairs.

After doing some shows with some singers, Jive Records offered me a record deal.

I said I didn't want to rap myself; I wanted to collaborate with singers I admire.

My first album was called "Shaq Diesel," and it featured Fif Doug, Eric Thurmon, and others...

This album sold one million copies, achieving platinum status.

My collaboration with Def Jed, "I Know I Have," broke into number 35 on the charts.

Recording an album is not easy, but I enjoy it very much.

Now I am a basketball star, a rapper, and a movie star (I also acted in movies).

In Shaq Diesel, I made fun of Larry Johnson, Greg Anthony, and Shawn Kemp.

This is interesting. It's not a personal grudge; it's the meaning of free rap.

But I didn't dare laugh at Forrest Gump, even though they made me do it.

After all, freedom has its limits.

In the following years, I released several more albums, and I became more and more familiar with the process.

They know how to record, how to sell, and how to boost chart rankings.

I enjoy making rap records and have made some money from it.

But this is just a small amount of money compared to my basketball salary.

It was a great experience, but I won't make a living from it.

My first album sold a lot, but I only received $6.

Because a lot of money was taken away by other miscellaneous people.

And because the album was so popular, those rappers started to hate my success.

They said, "You're a professional athlete, what are you doing in our world?"

When I was recording my second album, they would say, "Pay me $20 first."

Everything became very unfriendly, except for two people.

One is Jay-Z, and the other is Biggie Smalls.

Biggie Smalls is the friendliest person in the world.

Ah, they are definitely studio masters; they spend all night in the recording studio.

I repeat and revise again and again. I always prepare my words in advance because I don't want to waste too much of them.

After a match, I'll revise my lyrics on the plane and have Dennis Scott keep the beat for me.

Biggie never changes my words without permission; he always says, "I don't write."

If there were any problems with the recording, he would patiently point them out and kindly persuade me to do it again.

This suits my temperament; I'll obediently go in and do it again until I'm satisfied.

Jay-Z was the same; he was a very, very professional and friendly person, and he appeared on my third album.

Biggie was amazed by everything I had in Orlando, where my house was 64000 square feet at the time.

He said, "One day I will have all of this, and I will be the best."

He certainly is. He's young, talented, and ambitious, and I'm always happy to meet him.

The last time we met was on March 8, 1997, which was my birthday.

I have a cast on my leg and am on my way home. I expect to return to play in April.

I was preparing for the playoffs at the time, and everyone in the West was on edge.

Because Forrest Gump is back. Yes, he's back.

There was a traffic jam on Sunset Boulevard, and Biggie got into an argument with someone on the road.

I happened to run into him and asked him what had happened and if he needed help.

Biggie said it was no problem, just some minor issues.

He knew it was my birthday and invited me to a party tonight.

I told him it was no problem, and we'd see each other that evening. We bumped fists and then I left.

Biggie attended the Soul Train Music Awards ceremony and then went to a party at the Petersen Auto Museum.

I had originally planned to go and have a good time that night.

But I was so tired that I fell asleep while watching TV and forgot my pager in the car.

When they tried to contact me, I was lying on the sofa upstairs, snoring.

My mom found me at four in the morning and said, "Shaq, did you go to a party?"

I mumbled something incoherently, saying no, I didn't know what she was talking about.

I keep having a dream that I first encountered Forrest Gump in a race on February 11, 1993.

That was a confrontation I will never forget. It was the first time I truly understood what it meant to be number one in history.

Because of this, I had nightmares for many years, a really long time.

In 1997, he returned, like a nightmare returning.

My mother's words pulled me back from my reverie.

She continued, "Your friend was shot. He's dead."

He died in a rap war, and the killer was never found.

After leaving the party, Biggie sat in the front seat of the car.

An assassin drove up to him and fired four shots.

They say this is part of a long-standing feud between East Coast and West Coast rappers.

Tupac Shakur, one of Biggie's friends and rivals, died in the same way—by being shot.

I don't usually think about "what ifs," but after Biggie passed away, I spent a lot of time thinking about it.

What would have happened if I had been at that party?

If a 7-foot-1 Shaquille O'Neal were standing next to that car, would that guy still have fired?

If we had been there, things might have been different.

But maybe they'll kill Biggie anyway.

If it hadn't been that night, it might have been a day or two later, or even three days later.

The rap music scene is rife with violence.

Many rappers lived a life of danger before entering the rap music industry.

Guns and drugs are part of their daily lives.

You cannot escape it.

It's part of their lives.

When you carry your groceries upstairs back to your apartment, the guns and drugs are there.

When you visit your cousins, guns and drugs are also there.

When you go to the park to play ball, the guns and drugs are still there.

I can understand, because I see the same scene every day in Newark, New Jersey.

If you don't stay away from it, it will destroy you.

When my fourth rap album was released, critics started attacking me.

They said, "If Shaq wasn't a superstar, his rap albums wouldn't sell."

That's a very insightful observation.

Bro, what exactly are you trying to say?
However, I realized that my rap career should come to an end.

I have achieved enough: two platinum records and one gold record.

On the basketball court, I had achieved nothing at that time.

I should keep moving forward and aim for the championship.

Challenge that nightmare until you succeed.

So, let's go back to February 11, 1993, when the Orlando Magic hosted the Portland Trail Blazers.

My first head-on collision with Forrest Gump on the basketball court marked the beginning of a nightmare.

Only by understanding this can we truly crack everything and start afresh.

—Excerpt from Shaq Uncut: My Story, published in 2011.

(End of this chapter)