When Michael Jordan came out of his first retirement, there was a ‘big’ terror waiting for him on the court. Apparently, he shared that feeling with his teammates too. A Jordan-less Bulls had to contend with the Orlando Magic’s newest acquisition, the first overall draft pick and national standout, Shaquille O’Neal. The battering the 7’1″ giant subjected his opponents to still haunt the Bulls’ big man from down under, Luc Longley. But it was a Victor Wembanyama predecessor who left a lasting impression on Longley.

He’s the big topic once more after making the journey from Australia to Chicago for the Bulls Ring of Honor night. He delved into memories of his NBA career to answer who was “the toughest player” he had to guard against. In a heartbeat, Longley said, “Shaq was the toughest player I ever guarded.” However, while Shaq gave him cracked ribs and busted teeth, it was the Spurs speedster, David Robinson who gave him a bruised ego. “Although some might say the strength battle that I compete in whereas David Robinson, the speed battles were hard for me. So maybe I should say David.” 

Orlando selected O’Neal in the 1992 NBA draft while Jordan would retire the first time after winning the 1993 championship. Luc Longley started his NBA career in 1991 with the Minnesota Timberwolves and signed with the Bulls in 1994. There were several times during Longley’s championship run with the Bulls when he had to guard Shaq.

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When Longley was with the Wolves, Robinson throttled him in one game for 50 points, 9 rebounds and 6 blocks. Robinson was not enough to overcome Bulls Longley but he thwarted Shaq too to win the 1999 and 2003 championships. Where Robinson was faster, Shaq was stronger, making them unforgettable to Longley. The terror was mutual at least to one of his rivals.

Bulls big men left Shaquille O’Neal quaking

Coming out of the draft, Big Diesel was dominant at 7’1″ and 303 lbs. As Stephen A. Smith repeatedly chimed, he was in a completely different weight class than other big men like Longley who was listed at 265lbs. Shaq was able to use his ginormous stature effectively to throw his opponents around. He even once sent Jordan flying into the stands when they were teammates on the All-Star game.

O’Neal brought Magic out of the oblivion and led them closest to the finals then they’d ever been. Jordan admitted that after his short-lived baseball career, he was dreading meeting, “Shaq, the biggest person I’ve ever seen play, physically,” on the court.

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MJ’s Bulls had a big man rotation of Longley, Bill Wennington, and Will Perdue. This ‘Hack Pack’ scared O’Neal so bad in the 1995 Eastern Conference Finals that he sent a plea to Hulk Hogan for help. Shaq and Magic would stomp over the Bulls to the Finals without Hogan’s help.

Now O’Neal gets to boast his was the last team to beat a Jordan-led team in a playoff scenario. The fear he instilled is still felt by Longley.