The Orlando Magic are officially retiring Shaquille O’Neal‘s No. 32 jersey in celebration of the franchise’s 35th anniversary. O’Neal is expected to be honored in a postgame ceremony on Tuesday, February 13, becoming the first player in the Orlando Magic franchise to have his number retired. O’Neal also joins Wilt Chamberlain as the only NBA players to have their numbers retired by three teams they played for. O’Neal has his No. 24 retired by the Los Angeles Lakers and the No. 32 by the Miami Heat.
Within the league, there have been only 16 players who have had their numbers retired. These include Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, Charles Barkley, just to name a few. O’Neal was originally selected by Orland with the first overall pick of the 1992 NBA Draft where he spent four seasons between 1992-96. He appeared in 295 regular-season games and started in 293 games with the Magic, averaging 27.2 ppg., 12.5 rpg., 2.4 apg. and 2.79 bpg. in 37.8 mpg., while shooting .581 (3,208-5,522 FG) from the floor.
With the Magic, O’Neal was named NBA All-Star four times and was name to the All-NBA Second Team once (1994-95) and All-NBA Third Team twice (1993-94, 1995-96). He was also named to the NBA All-Rookie First Team in 1992-93 and was the NBA’s Rookie of the Year. O’Neal still hols the record as a franchise all-time leader in categories like blocked shots (second, 824), rebounding (third, 3,691), free throws made (third, 1,602), field goals made (fourth, 3,208) and points scored (sixth, 8,019). He was inducted into the Orlando Magic Hall of Fame in 2015 and the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2016.
In celebration of our 35th anniversary this season, we will officially retire jersey #32 in honor of Shaquille O’Neal during a postgame ceremony on Tuesday, February 13.
O’Neal becomes the first player in franchise history to have his number retired 🪄 pic.twitter.com/i5zk1b6IR9
— Orlando Magic (@OrlandoMagic) January 5, 2024
