Cherry picking
In 20 regular season matchups, Shaq has gotten the better of Hakeem, leading his teams to 14 wins and six losses. Shaq's numbers against Hakeem are also more impressive—he averaged 22.1 points on 54.4 percent shooting, 12.4 rebounds, 3.6 assists, 0.9 steals and 1.8 blocks.
In eight playoff matchups, Hakeem holds the edge in wins with a five- to three-game advantage. This includes when these two legendary centers met up in the 1995 NBA Finals, where Hakeem got the better of him in every contest, leading the Houston Rockets to a sweep of the Orlando Magic. Hakeem outscored Shaq 32.8 points per game to Shaq’s 28.0 points per game.
To Shaq’s credit, he was only in his third season while Hakeem was at the top of his game. The Lakers’ version of Shaq would’ve fared far better against Hakeem compared to the younger Magic version.
However, Shaq’s numbers over the course of their playoff duels are far superior. The Big Diesel put up 28.8 points on 55.6 percent shooting, 11.4 rebounds, 5.1 assists, 0.5 steals and 3.3 blocks. The Dream countered with a respectable but inferior 23.0 points on 46.5 percent shooting, 9.4 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 1.6 steals and 1.4 blocks.