NBA legend Shaquille O'Neal definitely knows a thing or two about switching teams, so he is more than qualified to talk about the decision of LeBron James to sign with the Philadelphia 76ers, the fourth franchise he has played for in his illustrious career. Unsurprisingly, he backed the superstar's decision to head back to the East, although he did sneak in a potentially divisive jab about The King's legacy with the Lakers.
In a recent exchange with the media, Shaq defended LeBron for his decision to change teams this summer, asserting that James is not chasing a ring at this point, as "he had already gotten rings the right way." He called the move "ring continuacy," maintaining that LeBron is merely helping somebody win a championship.
However, it did not take long before O'Neal took a jab at his body of work with the Lakers, arguing that since he only won one ring in LA, he cannot sit with the other legends who had played for the franchise.
Shaq defends LeBron's 76ers decision then proceeds to take a dig at his legacy with the Lakers
Shaq coming at LeBron's defense with his ring continuancy argument definitely stems from a shared experience, although that does not take away from the wisdom of his choice. The Lakers were clearly content with moving on from his era to commit fully to Luka Doncic, and it was only proper that James complied with their intended direction. There was no better time for him to de-commit and move elsewhere than this offseason, and the 76ers were the right team for him for obvious reasons.
However, Shaq's point about James' stint with the Lakers being a far cry from other legend who played for LA is pretty valid. While he did give LeBron his flowers for winning a championship in his time with the franchise, his success simply paled in comparison to the likes of O'Neal himself, Kobe Bryant, Magic Johnson, and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, who all won four to six rings with the team.
LeBron had a pretty noteworthy stint with the Lakers, but his career will probably not be best defined by tenure in Los Angeles. To be fair, it is likewise hard to envision his budding time with the 76ers trumping his prior stays with the Cavaliers and the Heat, but one thing that will be hard to dispute is the fact that Philadelphia presents his best chance to win a championship since his Heatles days.
It remains to be seen whether James will play one or two seasons with the 76ers, but if anything, he has a very good shot at winning his fifth ring. If he is lucky, he could even be in play for a sixth one –– a feat that will only completely silence his naysayers.
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