On a special night at the Staples Center, Shaquille O'Neal had his No. 34 jersey retired by the Los Angeles Lakers at halftime of the Lakers' huge 101-81 win over the Dallas Mavericks.
Lakers retire Shaquille O’Neal’s jersey 9 years after trade
Shaquille O’Neal was honored in a 15-minute halftime ceremony during the Lakers’ win over the Mavericks.
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In a 15-minute ceremony, a montage of Shaq being Shaq was followed by a pre-recorded message from Kobe Bryant as well as speeches from Phil Jackson and Jeanie Buss. The big man's jersey was then unfurled in the rafters with the Superman theme blaring over the loudspeakers.
Shaq finally took the mic himself, beginning a five-minute speech with his infamous “Can you dig it?” line. He then took the time to thank all the important people in his life, ranging from the late Dr. Jerry Buss to his family to Adam Sandler (wait, what?)
When it was all over, chants of “M-V-P” rained down on Shaq, who won three championships and three NBA Finals MVPs to along with the 2000 MVP award with the Lakers.
Here’s video of the ceremony (h/t to @jose3030):
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