Shaquille O’Neal’s battles against Michael Jordan gave him more than memorable moments on the basketball court. The four-time NBA champion recalled two important lessons he received from Jordan, one about how to treat an opponent during a game and another about dealing with failure. While their competitive relationship produced plenty of classic encounters, it was Jordan’s advice after a playoff defeat that stayed with O’Neal throughout his career.

During a conversation shared in a clip on X, O’Neal looked back at the few occasions when opponents managed to dunk on him. He recalled, “I can proudly say I’ve only been dumped on three times in 20 years. Jordan, Derrick Coleman, and a dude named Tim Perry.” However, his encounter with Jordan became notable for what happened after O’Neal finally managed to knock him down.

O’Neal explained that he reached out to help Jordan get back up, but the Bulls legend had a different response. “He said, don’t ever help nobody up. That’s what he said.” The exchange was particularly interesting because the two players also shared a connection through their Omega Psi Phi fraternity membership. O’Neal recalled that he had wanted to make sure Jordan did not dunk on him again, but the advice he received made him think differently about how he approached their matchups.

That was not the only lesson Jordan passed on to him. Their playoff rivalry eventually gave O’Neal another piece of advice, one that took considerably longer for him to understand.

Michael Jordan’s Advice After Sweeping Shaquille O’Neal’s Magic

The Orlando Magic and Chicago Bulls had contrasting results in their consecutive playoff meetings. In 1995, O’Neal’s Magic defeated Jordan’s Bulls 4-2 in the Eastern Conference semifinals. Orlando went on to reach the NBA Finals but lost to the Houston Rockets in a four-game sweep. The following season, Chicago responded by sweeping Orlando 4-0 in the 1996 Eastern Conference Finals.

For O’Neal, the defeat was another difficult experience in his young career. But Jordan offered him a perspective that he would spend the summer trying to understand. Recalling the conversation, O’Neal said Jordan put his hand on his shoulder and told him, “Before you succeed, you must first learn to fail.”

The message did not immediately make sense to O’Neal. He explained that he spent the summer thinking about those words, trying to understand what Jordan meant. Eventually, he began to recognize that even successful players and teams had to experience setbacks before reaching their goals. Reflecting on that process, O’Neal said, “For us, when we get tired of failing, that’s when we persevere and do something else.”

His own career would provide plenty of examples of that journey. After the 1996 sweep by Chicago, O’Neal joined the Los Angeles Lakers. The team had to work through difficult playoff exits before O’Neal and Kobe Bryant led Los Angeles to three consecutive titles from 2000 to 2002, with O’Neal earning Finals MVP honors in each championship run. He later won another title with the Miami Heat in 2006.

O’Neal also looked back at Orlando’s 1995 Finals loss to Houston and acknowledged his own role in the disappointment, saying, “And I kind of let down.” His admission adds context to why Jordan’s advice about failure remained meaningful. The lesson was not simply about accepting a defeat but recognizing where things went wrong and understanding what needed to improve.

Jordan’s advice came from his own experience of facing difficult playoff losses before building a championship legacy with Chicago. For O’Neal, those conversations offered a valuable perspective from one of the greatest competitors in basketball. The lessons were different, but both reflected the mindset Jordan wanted his fellow superstar to develop: compete without hesitation and learn from the setbacks that come along the way.