Forgotten Box Score Series: Remembering Shaq's astonishing triple-double

Shaq's monster triple-double was part of a larger trend.

Where Shaq truly dominated this game was in protecting the paint. In the early to mid-1990s, O’Neal was in his peak playing shape in terms of athleticism. As he entered the late 1990s and early 2000s, he put on more weight and became an immovable object, but he lost a bit of his hops and elite shot-blocking ability.

Six of his nine best shot-blocking games (8+ blocks) in his career came within his first two NBA seasons. The 15 blocks from Shaq on November 20th, 1993, were four more than the entire Nets team.

Orlando trailed the Nets after the first quarter by two. They trailed at halftime, 39-45. They even entered the 4th quarter down by a point, but O’Neal’s lockdown defense kept the game within reach even with the Magic shooting 39.2% from the field.

His 15th block came late in the 4th quarter and directly led to a Nick Anderson fastbreak-and-1 layup. It truly was an all-time great performance from Shaq that does not get enough recognition. O'Neal, of course, went on to play for the Los Angeles Lakers, where he won three titles, even recording a 61-point game.

He followed up his tenure there by joining the Miami Heat, where he added his fourth championship ring. Despite these championship runs, his career-best game will forever be this legendary triple-double.