Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal were one of the fiercest to play against when they were together. And they were at their fiercest when they later played against each other for a while after splitting up.

Either way, they were one of the most ferocious pairs in the NBA. In 1996, Los Angeles Lakers acquired the rights for Kobe Bryant from Charlotte Hornets who had drafted him in. No team had, until then, drafted a guard straight from high school. Such were the expectations from Kobe.

Shaq, by then, had a three-year experience in the NBA playing for Orlando Magic. The Lakers signed Shaq, who was a free agent, by freeing up salary after parting ways with other veteran players.

When Kobe Bryant met Shaquille O’Neal for the first time

By then, Kobe had already met Shaq. In 2018, Bryant and O’Neal sat down for a one-on-one session with NBA on TNT. During their conversation, Bryant talked about when he first met O’Neal.

It was before he came into the NBA and Shaq was playing for Orlando Magic. When Kobe went for a game, he wanted a photograph with Penny Hardaway – someone Kobe said he admired at that time.

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However, he wasn’t successful in getting a photograph with Hardaway but got one with Shaq who was also on that team.

“I came to a game. Penny back then was a role model. I looked up to him quite a bit. I asked to take a picture with him, he brushed me off. And then I came to you to ask and take a picture,” Bryant said.

“That’s when was the first time I met you.”

Shaq then talked about the time when he was signing for the Lakers. His words showed the vision the then General Manager Jerry West had for the Lakers with Kobe and Shaq. While Shaq was signing a lesser deal than he had asked for, West said they had acquired Kobe Bryant from Charlotte and they would win a few titles together.

His vision turned out to be a prophecy. The Kobe-Shaq duo led the Lakers to an incredible three-peat winning the 200, 2001, and 2002 titles.