The Los Angeles Lakers franchise boast of having some of the biggest names in the NBA. Whether it is Kobe Bryant, Magic Johnson, Shaquille O’Neal, or LeBron James, they have all represented the purple and gold.

The Lakers franchise is one of the greatest teams to ever play in the NBA with 17 titles to their name. While the fans expected the team to get their 18th this year, they are nowhere near that. Talking about their recent struggles, Lakers legend Shaquille O’Neal went all out.

According to the 4 time NBA champion, the Lakers look like they are quitting and are getting booed due to the lack of effort from the team.

Shaquille O’Neal bashes the Lakers

The Los Angeles Lakers are nowhere near what the fans expected them to be. After the acquisition of Russell Westbrook, many fans and experts dubbed them championship favorites. Currently, the Lakers are 9th in the Western Conference and Russell Westbrook has not had the best start to his life in LA.

Shaquille O’Neal is regarded as one of the best players to ever play and his prime came in LA. Pairing with Kobe Bryant, Shaq went on to win 3 titles for the purple and gold. Talking on the popular NBA on TNT show, Shaq ripped into the Lakers.

He said, “When you are a Laker, and you are playing in LA, all opponents, they are going to be coming to LA and they are going to be playing above their heads. Never make an excuse for lack of efforts.”

He further goes on to analyze the recent game against the Mavericks and he calls the team depleted. Shaq says, “You got to at least put more effort into it. I hate to use the word but it looks like they are quitting.”

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Safe to say, Shaq like many others is not happy with the way the Lakers are playing. This is not the first time Shaq has criticized the team heavily. He has talked about players like Russell Westbrook and Anthony Davis in the past. He also famously said that he prefers to watch the Golden State Warriors rather than the Lakers.

Shaq stats for the Lakers

O’Neal is regarded as one of the best players to ever play for the franchise and for good reason. He helped the Lakers to 3 titles, along with Kobe among various other individual achievements. 

Shaq averages 27.0 points, 2.5 assists, and 10.9 rebounds in his 8 seasons with the Lakers. His brilliant tenure with the franchise ended when he joined the Miami Heat in 2004.

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