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Shaquille O'Neal was a fearless scorer. And the way he used his size to assert dominance, very few defenders were able to slow him down. In his long-standing 19-year career, he was part of the All-Star team fifteen times, including his rookie season. Apart from raw strength, he had superior footwork, bullying defenders and scoring on them.
The 1999-2000 season was one of Shaquille O'Neal’s best individual performances. The Los Angeles Lakers finished the regular season with 67 wins, securing home advantage for the playoffs. Shaquille O'Neal was named regular season MVP, leading the league in scoring with 29.7 points per game. He added to his stats with 13.6 rebounds and 3 blocks per game. O’Neal scored 30 or more points in 39 games throughout the regular season. On that note, let’s take a look at some of his best scoring nights from that MVP season.
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#3 vs New York Knicks, 43 points
On March 19th, 2000, the Los Angeles Lakers faced the New York Knicks in a regular season match-up. Shaquille O'Neal came out of the locker room hungry for victory. He made 7 of his 10 attempts in the first quarter, and both the fans and the opposition immediately understood that it was going to be a long night. Shaquille O'Neal was dominant in the paint and ended up making 18 of his 31 attempted shots throughout the game.
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Shaquille O'Neal tallied a double-double with 43 points and 10 rebounds, on a 58.1% shooting night. Meanwhile, Patrick Ewing of the New York Knicks could not find the bottom of the net, shooting only 30% from the field. The Los Angeles Lakers won, 92-85.
#2 vs Golden State Warriors, 49 points
The Los Angeles Lakers were ready to take on the Golden State Warriors for their 76th regular season game. On April 5th, 2000, Shaquille O'Neal added to his efficient scoring season with a 70.4% shooting night. He scored consistently across four quarters, putting up 49 points from 19 field goals and 11 free-throws.
Shaquille O'Neal registered a double-double by the third quarter, grabbing 13 rebounds in the game. Shaq scored 33 of his 49 points in the second half to bring the Los Angeles Lakers a 111-104 victory. The game was closely fought, with Donyell Marshall leading the Golden State Warriors in scoring by recording 32 points.
#1 vs Los Angeles Clippers, 61 points
On March 6th, 2000, the Los Angeles Lakers faced their hometown neighbors, the Los Angeles Clippers, in a Western Conference match-up. Both teams share the same court, allowing them to play in front of their home fans even during an away game. Shaquille O'Neal put on a show for fans in the arena on what turned out to be a career night for him, on his 28th birthday.
Shaquille O'Neal recorded a career-high 61 points from 24 made field goals, shooting an efficient 68.6%. The Lakers collectively grabbed 50 rebounds in the game, 23 of which were by Shaquille O'Neal. Scoring 26 points in the first half and 35 in the second, O’Neal led his team to a comfortable 123-103 victory.
