Shaquille O’Neal fired a Christmas Day jab at his former coach Phil Jackson following the Heat’s 101-85 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers, according to a report in the Los Angeles Times.
O’Neal, whom Jackson criticized for weight and free-throw issues while playing for the Lakers, apparently took offense to Jackson’s comment that he “didn’t like to work” during his days in Los Angeles.
“How can Benedict Arnold be reliable in what he says?” O’Neal replied as he left the Heat’s locker room following Miami’s victory.
The L.A. Times says that O’Neal barely broke stride as he made his comment, and did not elaborate.
But it is not hard to understand the source of Shaq’s angst: Jackson’s reunion with Kobe Bryant (and the Lakers.
O’Neal missed his 21st game and is recovering from surgery on November 19 to repair torn knee cartilage. He was in street clothes for the game and was therefore not required to give a (more formal) post-game interview.
Jackson favored Shaq over Bryant in a tell-all book released roughly two years ago. And the L.A. Times says Jackson had already talked to the news media by the time O’Neal made his comments.
“The only person I’ve ever had that hasn’t been a worker in the fortunate times I’ve been coaching is probably Shaq,” Jackson reportedly said. “He’s the one guy that didn’t really like to work. I know Pat [Riley] got him working here in Miami. We had a hard time getting him to work. All the other players — Michael [Jordan], Scottie [Pippen], Dennis Rodman, all those guys that we had, Horace Grant, they’re all hard-working practice and personal work players.”
