"You gotta go with Hakeem Olajuwon because I couldn't stop that MF" - Shaq shares his Mount Rushmore of bigs

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Shaquille O’Neal is one of the best big men of all time, although he has usually acknowledged that a few legends had better careers than him. The “Big Diesel” was recently asked who he has on his Mount Rushmore of centers excluding him.

While he mentioned the usual suspect, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, he also added Bill Russell, Wilt Chamberlain, and his tormentor, Hakeem Olajuwon.

“You gotta go with Mr. Russell for championships,” Shaq said. “You gotta go with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. You gotta go with Hakeem Olajuwon ‘coz I couldn’t stop that motherf*****. And you gotta go with the other most dominant player, Wilt Chamberlain.”

O’Neal had nightmares of facing “The Dream”

As one of the most dominant players ever, only a few opponents were able to stop O’Neal. During his finest seasons as a member of the Los Angeles Lakers, he steamrolled over defenders on the way to three rings.

But before joining the Lake Show in the 1996 offseason, he also had the chance to contend for the title after leading the Orlando Magic to the 1995 Finals. The only obstacle standing in his way was Olajuwon, whom he admitted he couldn’t intimidate.

The 1994-95 campaign was shaping up to be a dream season for Shaq, as he helped lead the Magic to the top record in the Eastern Conference and placed second in MVP voting. He also dominated the East in the playoffs to the tune of 25.1 points and 11.8 rebounds per game on a 57.2% shooting clip.

O’Neal appeared to have fared even better in the championship round, upping his averages to 28.0 points, 12.5 rebounds, and 6.3 assists per contest and shooting more efficiently. But he just couldn’t limit Hakeem, who outfinessed and outsmarted him. It also didn’t help that his teammates couldn’t step up to the plate.

O’Neal’s other Mount Rushmore choices

Because of what he did to Shaq and the accolades he amassed over his 18 seasons in the NBA, Olajuwon certainly deserves to be mentioned in the same breath as other all-time great centers. However, the jury’s out on whether he is in the same tier as Abdul-Jabbar and Russell, who had the edge in rings and MVPs, and Chamberlain, whose dominance in the sport has been well-documented.

Interestingly, O’Neal likely would have included himself on the list if there hadn’t been any stipulation that he shouldn’t be among the choices. After all, he claimed to have already passed Olajuwon in the ranking of centers. A question is which name he would take out if he were among the candidates.