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Shaquille O'Neal was a towering presence in the paint whenever he set foot on the floor. The Hall of Famer has been on three All-Defensive second teams throughout his career. Even when he went up against centers like Hakeem Olajuwon, Patrick Ewing and David Robinson, he was fearless and always made it harder for them to score.
Shaquille O'Neal has blocked 2,732 shots throughout his career, many of them in clutch situations. When he blocked a shot, Shaquille O'Neal did it with authority, making sure he delivered a message to the attacker. The next time someone entered the paint and saw Shaquille O'Neal there, passing it outside started to seem like the safer option. That being said, let’s look at Shaquille O’Neal’s top 4 seasons in terms of blocked shots.
#4 2000-01 with Los Angeles Lakers – 204 blocks
At age 28, in the 2000-01 season, Shaquille O'Neal was shooting an efficient 57.2% from the field. On the defensive end, he had five or more blocks in 14 regular-season games. Throughout the season, he blocked 204 shots and was named to the NBA All-Defensive second team. Shaquille O'Neal’s season-high in blocks was 7, against the Philadelphia 76ers on Dec 5th, 2000. In that game, he scored 27 points and grabbed 20 rebounds as well.
Shaquille O'Neal’s dominant performance on both ends of the floor helped the Los Angeles Lakers secure the second seed. They finished second in the Western Conference standings after logging a 56-26 record. Throughout the playoffs, the Lakers lost only one game, Game 1 of the 2001 NBA Finals. Shaquille O’Neal registered 17 blocks in those same NBA Finals and was named Finals MVP after the Lakers won the series in five games.
#3 1993-94 with Orlando Magic – 231 blocks
Shaquille O'Neal, in his second year in the league, looked like a seasoned professional who had been playing for many years. He led his team in scoring, rebounds and blocks with averages of 29.3, 13.2 and 2.9 respectively. With a 50-32 record, the Orlando Magic finished fourth in the Eastern Conference standings.
On Nov 20th, 1993, Shaquille O'Neal had one of his best individual performances. In a two-point win against the New Jersey Nets, Shaquille O'Neal recorded a triple-double with blocks. He logged 24 points, 28 rebounds and 15 blocks in just 36 minutes. Unfortunately, the Magic were ousted by the Indiana Pacers in the first round of the playoffs and their season came to an end.
#2 1999-00 with Los Angeles Lakers – 239 blocks
In the 1999-00 season, Shaquille O'Neal won his first NBA championship and won two MVP awards – regular season and Finals MVP. During the regular season, Shaquille O'Neal led the league in scoring with an average of 29.7 points and contributed with 239 blocks on the defensive end. O’Neal finished third in total blocks, behind Dikembe Mutombo and Alonzo Mourning, who had 269 and 294 blocks respectively.
The Most Valuable Player continued to play at a high level in the playoffs. Shaquille O'Neal played clinically on offense while also averaging 2.4 blocks per game on the defensive end. The Lakers went past the Sacramento Kings, Phoenix Suns and Portland Trailblazers to reach the 2000 NBA Finals. Taking on the Indiana Pacers in the finals, Shaquille O'Neal averaged 38 points, 16.7 rebounds and 2.7 blocks per game in that series. The Lakers claimed their first title in the Kobe-Shaq era, winning the series in six games.
#1 1992-93 – with Orlando Magic – 286 blocks
Shaquille O'Neal was just 20 years old when he made his debut in the league in 1992. Defensively, in his rookie season, Shaquille O'Neal logged 286 blocks. He averaged 23.4 points, 13.9 rebounds and 3.5 blocks per game to claim the Rookie of the Year title. One of Shaquille O'Neal’s best defensive performances was against the New York Knicks, recording 9 blocks in the game. Shaq added to that game, with 21 points and 19 rebounds.
Shaquille O'Neal and the Orlando Magic finished the regular season with a 41-41 record, missing out on the playoffs. But on the bright side, it was the start of an era of dominance by Shaquille O'Neal. He performed well throughout the season, becoming the first rookie since Michael Jordan to be voted an All-Star starter.
