The Shaquille O’Neal and Penny Hardaway partnership in Orlando resulted in multiple playoff appearances, including a berth in the 1995 NBA Finals. Shaq’s dominance in the paint and Penny’s playmaking skills perfectly complemented each other.
Many fans believed that they would bring the Larry O’Biran trophy to the franchise as they looked poised for great things.
Advertisement
Leaving Orlando
Unfortunately, for the Magic fans, the tandem went their separate ways when O’Neal decided to leave Orlando for the Los Angeles Lakers in 1996. Penny was left pretty much by himself while Shaq was paired with a 17-year-old prodigy named Kobe Bryant.
Initial comparisons were inevitable given O’Neal and Hardaway’s success together. However, such analyses were cast aside by the 1999-00 season when Kobe developed his own identity.
Penny and Kobe had the same build and moved the same way, but they were two different players. O’Neal immediately noticed what type of player Kobe was. And in the process, Shaq may have discovered Penny’s weakness.
Advertisement
“When I played with Penny, Penny always looked for the pass first,” O’Neal said in 2000, via the Los Angeles Times. “Kobe’s a little more aggressive about trying to score.”
“But Penny always looked for the pass. He used to pass too much, sometimes,” he added.
Too dominant?
Was Penny truly gun-shy? Or is there a more nuanced analysis behind his passing the ball too much? While O’Neal’s departure meant the end of an era in Orlando, it was also the mark of new beginnings.
Advertisement
Without a dominant center in the middle, the Magic coaching staff had to concoct a playbook involving almost every player. Penny was delighted by the opportunities that opened up for him and his teammates.
“We were happy when Shaq was out,” Hardaway said in 1997. “Because we were all involved, and everyone got more shots. Opponents thought so too. MJ told me when the Big Fella wasn’t there, we moved the ball better.”
“Ball movement was better, we ran a lot more, and we all knew we had to step up on D,” Magic forward Dennis Scott said.
Advertisement
The Magic players’ comments reveal that they really had no choice but to feed Shaq the ball every time on offense. That simple tactic worked, and moving away from it was foolish. It brought them glory and honor and delighted fans. Hardaway’s overpassing wasn’t really a weakness but a byproduct of a stringent offensive system.
But this happiness was only short-lived. In their first season without Shaq, the Magic finished seventh place in the East and were booted out by the Miami Heat in the first round. In the 1997-98 season, a left knee limited Penny to just 19 games, and the Magic failed to make the postseason.
He recovered and in a lockout-shortened 1998–99 season, powered the Magic to a 33-17 record. But by the end of the year, he was traded to the Phoenix Suns, where he battled more injuries and playoff disappointments.
Advertisement
Meanwhile, Shaq thrived with the Lakers. Sure, Kobe took over some games and deviated from the triangle offense. But such antics were needed, especially when O’Neal got into foul trouble. In the end, the Kobe-Shaq tandem’s three rings vastly overshadowed the Penny-Shaq duo’s ringless resume.
This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Sep 6, 2025, where it first appeared in the Off The Court section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.