Shaquille O’Neal joined the ranks of Laker greats like Jerry West, Wilt Chamberlain and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar when his No. 34 jersey was retired by the Lakers Wednesday night.
The ceremony included a highlight video of some of Shaq’s best (and funniest) moments in purple and gold, a congratulatory message on the jumbotron from former teammate Kobe Bryant, a brief speech from Phil Jackson and then the jersey unveiling led by Jeanie Buss.
O’Neal then took the mic to thank all of the fans, his family, friends, former teammates, Phil Jackson and the Buss family for all that the love and support they have shown him throughout his illustrious career.
The special night was capped off by a 101-81 victory from the Lakers thanks to a triple-double (23-11-11) from Kobe Bryant.
Editorial side note: Shaq’s full jersey retirement speech can be seen here in this video he made in-studio.
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