Ex-Laker Shares How Three-Peat Was Sparked By Kobe-Shaquille Squabble

Most know the celebrated feud of the late Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal when they were still with the Los Angeles Lakers. Some may have only noticed it towards the tail-end but friction had already been brewing starting the 1999-2000 season.

One member of that team was AC Green. He recalled how then-Lakers head coach Phil Jackson called a meeting and then asked the coaches to leave the players inside a room where a film session was taking place.

Green shared that incident on the “Off The Dribble: The Byron Scott” podcast recalling how things got heated and how some furniture even got moved. It was a heated moment that may not surprise Lakers fans that much. But the result of that session was the start of the Lakers dynasty.

After bagging the 2000 NBA title, the purple and gold went on to win the 2001 and 2002 plums as well. But after that, most already know how things just fell apart. This was despite the addition of two other NBA stars to the fold in Karl Malone and Gary Payton in the 2003-2004 season.

But as far as the Kobe-Shaq feud, it was all true. No less than renowned book author Roland Lazenby attested to that, pointing out how the egos of Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal were just too much to handle.

“It was real. It was understandable. You had Shaq who’s this talented young giant, a very fun-loving guy, immature in a lot of ways who had become the next great savior of LA… dating all the way back to George Mikan. So here comes Shaq, they have this young talented guy. It was immense, you would think that the head-on collision,” Lazenby said when he appeared on the Sports For All PH podcast hosted by Vincent Juico and this writer in June.