“David Robinson is my favorite player ever. I love David Robinson,” Shaquille O’Neal had said on Robinson’s NBA 75 Stories feature. As per Shaq’s own admission, he loved him so much that he had to make up a story about him, stating publicly that D-Rob refused to sign an autograph for him when he was 13! Because Robinson was “a nice man” and Shaq needed something negative against him in his head to play harder against “The Admiral.” But Shaq’s reverence for Robinson did not take away his competitive spirit and as they entered the NBA landscape facing each other, a lifelong feud between two of the most dominant centers was born.

Going into the last day of the 1993-94 season, Shaq held a slim lead over Robinson for securing the scoring title of the season. On April 24, 1994, the last day of the regular season, first Shaq dropped 32 points and 22 rebounds against the Nets, winning the game for the Orlando Magic. To beat the big fella, Robinson needed 33 points. But later that day, in a shocking turn, he exploded for 71 points—19 more than his previous career high, as his Spurs faced the Clippers.

Shaq believed the Spurs had orchestrated the performance to secure the scoring title over him. If rumors are to be believed, with a minute left in the game, and the Spurs up over 20, Spurs head coach John Lucas instructed his players to foul the opposing team so Robinson could get a few more shots up. The Admiral scored an additional 7 points in the final minute to give him the total 71. “That meant I was on his mind. They ran every play for him,” Shaq had said. “If I hadn’t been triple-teamed and was selfish and tried to score every time I touched the ball, I could have scored 70, too.” The big man never let it go.

The controversy has now once again surfaced on NBA on TNT during a segment ranking the greatest individual stat lines. When Robinson’s 71-point game appeared, Shaq didn’t hold back. “I want an investigation done now,” he declared. Even Candace Parker called him out, questioning why he voted for a game he thought was rigged! Shaq, however, acknowledged the performance while still believing it was tainted. He stated, “Because it’s still a very impressive 71 points.” Not only Shaq or the Magic squad, even some of the Clippers players were also disgusted with the game.

When Magic coach Brian Hill heard the news, he called it a “mockery of the game.” Clippers vet Mark Jackson went off on his team after the game, “If you are not committed to winning, I don’t want to be here. And I think tonight shows no commitment towards winning.” Equally disgruntled was forward Dominique Wilkins.

He said via LA Times, “Disappointing is an understatement for this season. There’s no pride here. If you can look at yourself in the mirror after a game like that and be happy with yourself, something’s wrong. Nothing against David, he’s a great player, but how can you let a guy get 71 points? I think it’s ridiculous.” Interestingly, years later, it was Wilkins who let out a few anecdotes about the game.

Shaquille O’Neal’s conspiracy theory gains strength after 30 years

Last year, Wilkins shed light on what happened that night. During an interview, Wilkins revealed that before the Clippers faced the Spurs, their coach walked into the locker room and told the team, “Don’t be upset, I’ve been told to take y’all out after the first five minutes… they really want to see David Robinson keep the scoring title in the West.” Shaq was playing for the Orlando Magic in the East at the time. Wilkins was stunned. The host of the show even called a “timeout” to process the revelation, saying, “That game was fixed!”

When Shaq saw the clip, he didn’t hold back. He commented, “I f***** knew it.” The Big Diesel wasn’t just frustrated—he felt cheated. To make sure the world saw it, he even shared the post multiple times. Shaq’s frustration was understandable. Wilkins wasn’t the only one upset. Veteran guard Mark Jackson, who was on the Clippers at the time, was reportedly disgusted with how the game unfolded. Even he couldn’t deny that something felt staged.

Top Comment by Snake

Nothing burger So be mad at YOUR SQUAD because they didn’t run every play for you

Share your take

Debate

Shaq later joked about the situation on The Big Podcast, asking, “Should I sue? On the grounds of point shaving? Tampering?” Host Adam Lefkoe also alleged David Stern wanted the Admiral to win and keep the scoring title. When asked what the NBA commissioner’s motive to rig the scoring title could be, Shaq responded: “Because you don’t want a young unorthodox guy coming in. Because remember, I played the line but I go over the line. See what I am saying. I have always done it my way… Me and Draymond are similar.”

He even admitted to rewatching the game after hearing Wilkins’ claim, saying, “It was definitely some shenanigans going on.” Does this change the view about Robinson’s legendary night?