Netflix has the 30/30 about the Shaq/Penny Orlando Magic team. I had no idea that the Magic lowballed Shaq. I always just thought that he bolted for LA. Apparently that wasn't the case. Orlando offered 4 years/ 80 million. Shaq was thinking about accepting, and actually had told his agent that he wanted to stay in Orlando. Before he accepted, the Heat gave Mourning 100 million. That changed everything. Shaq wanted more money. The Magic balked. LA cleared enough cap space to offer 121 million and Shaq signed before the Magic got their shit together and matched. The Magic fucked up. Why you would low-ball a player like Shaq is beyond me.
I also didn't realize that Nick Anderson missed 4 three throws in a row that would have made it a two possession game. That completely broke him. I remember he was never the same after that.
Yeah, was kind of interesting. The Magic couldn't get their heads around paying a player over $100 million.
I actually remember watching this game and being shocked he missed them. I loved to watch Hakeem on that team.
So stupid. It was essentially as if the Bulls told Jordan they didn't think he was worth the most money. The Magic lucked into a once-in-a-generation center and they completely blew it.
the fact that they put incentives on his next contract regarding free throws probably didn't help him much either. that's a pretty low blow man.
Mismanagement across the board. They mismanaged Hardaway as well. I remember hearing that their medical staff did a horrible job with his knees.
This league is all about the talent, more so than the NFL, MLB and NHL. With only five players on the court, you need great individual talent to win. Yes, it's still a team game, so that talent needs to work together, but you NEED the talent to build a winner. So, when an organization like ORL low balls a player like Shaq, they get what they deserve. Same with OKC and Harden. Yeah, I bag on Harden all the time as a first option. His game has too many holes to ever be the first option on a championship team, but if he was still in OKC, he'd be the best damn 3rd option in the league and that team would have been competing for the last 4 championships against SAS, MIA and GSW. They cheaped out and broke up an incredibly young core that had just been to the finals. So, I hope GSW sweeps them and wins every game by 20+ points, Durant leaves this summer and Westbrook leaves next summer and that team, their cheap ass owners and their dumb ass fans get several years of 15-win teams. Moral to the story: If you have the talent, pay the money necessary to keep it. If you don't, you don't deserve to own an NBA team. BNM
I think they lucked into too much success early on, and they didn't appreciate it. The organization had only been around for a couple of years when they drafted Shaq. Similarly, the Thunder ownership had only been around for a few years before they moved to OKC. They inherited Durant, and they lucked into Westbrook. They took it for granted. If they lose Durant this summer, and Russ next summer, they'll start to realize how cold the NBA can be.
saw it, shaq basically said that he wanted to be the man, unquestioned. was jealous of penny and nike. that said, if orlando came strong with a contract offer, he would have signed it. would have been a whiner, and probably would have demanded a trade eventually, but he would have signed.
Great 30 for 30, I never knew Shaq wanted the Magic to draft Penny, but holy shit... Webber and Shaq would've been better, too bad Shaq's ego got in the way.
Eh, I tend to agree that Shaq/Webber wouldn't have worked well. He and Penny were amazing together. If he would have stayed, and Penny would have stayed healthy, they would have won a championship for sure.
Penny was a hell of player (didn't see him play other than highlights) but Shaq+Webber would've been the best frontcourt of all time... Webber would've made Horace Grant look like dookie lol
I think the issue was the egos. Shaq and Webber would have feuded. Penny was a major introvert, and extremely quiet. That's why he and Shaq were able to coexist at first. Weber had an ego. He and Nellie feuded and he forced his way out of Golden State.
I remember being in Kindergarten to about 2nd grade when that Magic team was ridiculously popular at my school. Shaq was like the biggest thing ever, then he joined the dark side.
