Over the last 15 years, the basketball worldhas been consumedwith a mostly fruitless search for the next Michael Jordan. But while Jordan is seen as the best basketball player of all-time, finding the next Shaquille O'Neal will be just as difficult, if not more so.He retired on Wednesday after an injury-plagued season in Boston, which began with a lot of promise but ended with him unable to stay on the court in their second-round loss to the Miami Heat.
His career spanned generations: Isiah Thomas was in his first All-Star Game and Chris Paul was in his last. And his statistics reflect that -- 28,596 points (5th all-time), 13,099 rebounds (13th) and 2,732 blocks (4th).
Shaq had no learning curve: as a 20-year old rookie, he averaged 23 points on 56% shooting, 14 rebounds and 3.5 blocks. Dwight Howard, the closest thing to him in today’s NBA,just had the best season of his careerafter averaging 23 points on 59% shooting, 14 rebounds and 2.5 blocks.
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