Shaquille O'Neal--The Big Aristotle, Superman, The Diesel--whatever nickname you can think of, the big guy with 4 championships in his legacy (and a bunch of broken baskets) is leaving the NBA forever after playing for 20 years.

Any thoughts? Earlier? Later? Favorite moments of Shaq?

too bad Shaq was a good player i even had his shoes

he was probably ashamed of the horrible game named after him, Shaq-Fu.

Meh, I never really liked him much after he left the Heat. HE was a pretty good player all-around; the moments he had with Kobe Bryant were very memorable. I will miss him. :/

I love Shaq, in his prime he was easily one of the top-five centers to ever play the game not to mention his off-court success in virtually whatever he wanted. He gave some of the most dominant playoff performances ever witnessed during his time with the Lakers, especially Game 1 of the 2001 Finals, a 44-20 undressing of Dikembe Mutumbo, a top-notch defender who was overwhelmed from the get-go.

However, as a Celtics fan and having watched such a both figuratively and literally painful end to his career, it was time for him to retire(Cavs fans and Suns fans from a few year ago are nodding in agreement right now). I respect him for walking away and not wanting to "Hold Boston hostage" with his injury, as he put it. Granted, it only means Danny Angie can use that money taken off the cap on overpaying another aging big man, but I digress. Everyone has a time where they know its done, and unfortunately Shaq is no different. With how the game is evolving, it's doubtful another true big man will ever dominate to this degree again.

I will miss Shaq. He was a dominant player, and even though this last season and the few before it didn't show, he still had the heart and desire. But his skills degraded.

It's life. He couldn't do it anymore. It's a shame it's over, but he will always be one of my favorite players.

I don't really follow basketball, but from what i have been able to gather, Shaq was considered of a legend of his time before his free throw went into the trash like a balled up piece of paper.

Long live the king.

drn I was about to make a thread for his but yea he was 40 ish 5th alltime leading scorer (somewhere around 29000) several championships he will be in th hall in afew years

I kinda thought he was gonna quit this year...I mean, 20 YEARS? that's a long time, period.

I'm glad he's retiring. I think he should have retired 3 or 4 years ago. These last few seasons have been kind of painful to watch honestly.

I didn't like him personally because he played for teams I didn't cheer for at the time he was playing for them but I respect what he did as a player. To be that big and to play as well as he did was impressive.

Kinda late and a bump but this was expected, he is old and it was about time for him to retire. He is a bound Hall of Famer and he had it all in the NBA.

This is big. He was one of the best in his day. I just hope he doesn't pull a Brett Favre and play again.

vizwiz123 : Lol home team right?u root for them always or maybe another? Yeah he was a great player I too thought he was gonna retire a couple years ago, with him getting older and and his performance on the court but still a truly great player. he will be missed. Michael Jordan!!!

I've never exactly watched NBA or any basketball TV on that matter. 

I however, do know Shaq. I didn't know he was retiring, and that's sad! D: 
He was my favorite player to play on the NBA N64 game, LOL. 

UserMike : n00b.

I hate the Lakers, but everyone else who lives here LOVES them. I couldn't find another shirt to wear, so I wore that one. =P

Shaq was definitely good for the game, and he was one of the best players during his prime.  It is a shame he had to retire.

Wow, first I've heard of this. >.> I really HAVEN'T paid much attention to recent events...

Anyway, I've never been a huge fan or anything, but he was a good player. A horrible actor >.> but a good basketball player. I'm not entirely surprised to hear of his retirement, though. Twenty years is a LONG time. He had a great run.

well it is kinda sad but he has been playing for over 20 years so i guess he should