Shaquille O'Neal encourages Kobe Bryant to play beyond this season
Shaquille O'Neal says he would have kept playing longer if his body allowed him to do so.
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1 min read
Shaquille O'Neal and Charles Barkley disagree about Kobe Bryant. While Barkley said he hopes Bryant retires after this season because "I don't like seeing great players just out there," O'Neal wants his former Los Angeles Lakers teammate to play as long as he wants.
From the New Orleans Times Picayune's John Reid:
O'Neal encourages Bryant to continue playing beyond this season if he desires so. Bryant will be in the final year of his contract in which he will earn a league-high $25 million this upcoming season. He won't make a decision to return or retire until after this season.
''If you still got something, you should go because once it's done you can't get it back,'' O'Neal said. ''If I hadn't got hurt I would have went on and played my last season to try and break Wilt Chamberlain's scoring record.
O'Neal ended his 19-year career playing 53 games for the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2009-10 and just 37 games for the Boston Celtics in 2010-11. He was trying to team with stars to win one last title, and it didn't work. Bryant has taken a very different route, obviously, and he'll get to retire as a Laker. It looks likely that Bryant will hang it up after his 20th season, but he won't fully announce that it's a farewell tour.
Ultimately, Bryant's body is going to tell him what to do. He's 37 years old now, and he's played 41 games over the last two seasons because of serious injuries. Before tearing his Achilles in 2012-13, he seemed to be defying his age. Perhaps he can do that again, but it will be a lot more difficult this time. While Bryant's peers still see him as an elite player, it would be risky to bet on him dominating like he used to.
You can understand why Bryant is leaving the door open, though. O'Neal is totally right when he says that once you're done, you're done. No one, Bryant included, knows how much he has left.
