"F**k make them do it" - Shaquille O'Neal reveals secretly wishing to join Mark Cuban's Mavericks after LA stint

Shaquille O
Shaquille O'Neal he seriously considered joining the Dallas Mavericks after run with the LA Lakers. (Photos from Shaquille O'Neal's X page and Dirk Nowitzki and Mark Cuban's IGs)ki

NBA legend Shaquille O'Neal wanted to team up with Dirk Nowitzki with the Dallas Mavericks after his successful run with the LA Lakers had negotiations progressed as he had hoped.

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The four-time NBA champion revisited his planned move to Dallas on his "The Big Podcast," uploaded on Friday, with Nowitzki as a guest. Shaquille O'Neal shared that during the time he was contemplating moving out of L.A., where he won three NBA titles, in 2004, he reached out to Mavericks owner Mark Cuban for the possibility of him going to play in Dallas.

The Basketball Hall-of-Famer said:

"Trust me, I tried to get to Dallas many times. Me and Mark was working behind the scenes. Right after I left L.A., Mark was the first person I called. ..."
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"I called Mark, and I said 'Mark, whatever you got to do get me there.' He said, 'The Lakers won't do it, man.' I said, 'F**k make them do it, Mark.' They would not do it. But it would have been nice."

Check out what O'Neal had to say below:

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While Shaquille O'Neal's move to Dallas didn't push through, it eventually worked for all parties. O'Neal went on to win his fourth NBA title with the team he ended up with - the Miami Heat - in 2006, while Nowitizki continued to build on his legend and led the Mavericks to the 2011 NBA championship.


Shaquille O'Neal admits being mad at Dirk Nowitzki for passing him in the all-time scoring list

While Shaquille O'Neal wanted to play alongside Dirk Nowizki in Dallas and has high respect for him, he, however, admitted that at one point he got mad at the Mavericks legend for passing him in the all-time NBA scoring list.

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He spoke about in Nowitzki's guesting on O'Neal's "The Big Podcast," relaying how he dreaded being relegated a rung lower in the all-time scoring list after the German superstar passed him in 2015.

Shaquille O'Neal said (via The Sports Rush):

"Dirk I am mad at you. I didn't know you passed me up until (co-host) Adam (Lefkoe) told me. He was like your boy Dirk is about to pass you. ... I was f**king mad, because now what am I, number 9. ... I am going to be a f**king bum, I can't believe it. I am about to be out of the top 10."
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Currently, Nowitzki sits at No. 6 in the all-time NBA scoring list with 31,560 points while O'Neal is No. 9 with 28,596. LeBron James leads the elite list with 40,474 and counting, followed by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (38,387), Karl Malone (36,928), Kobe Bryant (33,643) and Michael Jordan (32,292).

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Edited by Bhargav
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