Shaquille O’Neal brought the house down with laughter during his Hall of Fame speech in Springfield, Massachusetts. After Allen Iverson left everyone teary-eyed and emotional, it seemed like a tough task to follow him but in classic Shaq form, he handled it smoothly and his speech wound up being just as good as Iverson’s in his own way. Shaq took a more funny approach to his speech besides thanking so many greats who paved the way for him.
@IamJoeSports
Shaq thanks previous greats like Bill Russell, Julius Erving, Isaiah Thomas and many more but the best part of his time at the podium came in the way of jokes.
He mentioned Kobe and it seemed like a serious salute at first but then the punchline made the entire crowd erupt in laughter.
“Last but not least, the great Kobe Bryant. A guy that would push me to help me win three titles in a row. Also would help me get pushed off the team and traded to Miami”
.@SHAQ's shoutout to Kobe ? #16HoopClass https://t.co/G7j2pzUk5q
— NBA TV (@NBATV) September 10, 2016
Another memorable line from his speech was this joke about owning a Buick that he couldn’t fit in but when they offered him $3 million dollars as an endorser he was like “I can fit”
.@SHAQ leaving no stones unturned tonight. #16hoopclass https://t.co/pfpDR2jtxj
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) September 10, 2016
This comment about Yao Ming explains how Shaq found out he could speak English, after already competing against him for three years.
Shaq: Nice move.
Yao: Thanks, my brotha. #16hoopclass https://t.co/Jjt3SvwNIZ
— NBA TV (@NBATV) September 10, 2016
All in all, this was a great night in NBA history and just like when they were on the court, everyone stepped to the podium and delivered. If you haven’t watched Shaq’s entire speech, I highly recommend you check it out below.