"I looked at it differently" - Lakers PR admits he has no regrets about the Kobe Bryant-Shaquille O'Neal breakup

Yahoo

15-06-2025

"I looked at it differently" - Lakers PR admits he has no regrets about the Kobe Bryant-Shaquille O'Neal breakup originally appeared on Basketball Network.
Many point to the Los Angeles Lakers' defeat in the 2004 NBA Finals against the Detroit Pistons as the breaking point of the Kobe Bryant-Shaquille O'Neal partnership. The loss revealed that behind the curtains was a team in shambles.
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Most were disappointed that the Lakers' superstars couldn't coexist. But John Black, Lakers vice president of public relations, had a different take on how things unfolded.
Different perspectives
When the Lakers split up the iconic duo, it seemed like everyone instantly forgot about the three-peat and the dynasty they built in Los Angeles. But Black saw how, despite all those feuds early in their stint as teammates, Bryant and O'Neal chose to stick together.
"I've said this a million times to media guys: When it ended, it was portrayed as extremely disappointing and how could we let it happen that Shaq and Kobe couldn't work things out," he said via Bleacher Report. "I looked at it differently. It did work out. They spent eight years together and they didn't like each other and it was difficult, and that thing could've ended in two years or three years."
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"It could've gone sour earlier," Black continued. "But despite the discomfort of it, the disharmony and dislike, they stayed together for eight years, won three championships together. People look back at the great run of harmony Magic and Kareem had together, but it was the same amount of time Shaq and Kobe spent together. I think it was pretty phenomenal that it did work out as long as it did."
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The respect
Kobe and O'Neal were no longer teammates, but the tension between them was still felt.
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After Bryant lost in the 2008 NBA Finals, Shaq dissed his former Lakers teammate in a freestyle rap with a line: "Kobe, tell me how my a** taste." When Kobe won his fifth championship in 2010, he clapped back at O'Neal by telling the reporters: "I got one more than Shaq."
Those little nudges between the two parties contributed to the narrative that they truly hated each other. Fans fantasized about how many championships they could've won if they put their egos aside and put in the work. Some say they could have won at least five. Some felt they could've snagged as many as eight.
But instead of hypotheticals, people were more focused on their relationship. Everyone wanted the two to be on good terms. But it didn't look that way.
Then 2020 January 26, 2020 happened. Kobe was no longer around.
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O'Neal finally cleared the air on their relationship when the Lakers legend passed. He admitted that the two had their ups and downs, but the respect was always there.
"Kobe and I pushed one another to play some of the greatest basketball of all time," O'Neal said. "And, yes, sometimes, like immature kids, we argued, we fought, we bantered or insulted each other with off-handed remarks."
"But make no mistake, even when folks thought we were on bad terms, when the cameras were turned off, he and I would throw a wink at each other and say, 'Let's go whoop some a*s,'" the NBA icon added.
Perhaps it's best to appreciate Shaq and Kobe's body of work as duos. Yes, they probably could've won more if they continued playing together. But they still did something very few have done throughout NBA history — won a three-peat.
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Related: Gary Payton says he warned Shaquille O'Neal not to beef with Dwyane Wade like he did with Kobe Bryant: "I had to pull him aside"
This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Jun 14, 2025, where it first appeared.