Last week, the Los Angeles Lakers unveiled a statue outside of the Staples Center for legendary center Shaquille O'Neal. Shaq's former teammate Kobe Bryant spoke at the event, as well as his former coach Phil Jackson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. The statue shows Shaq dunking, a sight that was quite common during his playing days as the 7'1" big man was well known for shattering backboards. The ceremony and the sight of Shaq and Kobe together again brought back the debate of which NBA duo was the greatest of all-time, Shaq and Kobe or Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen?

Shaq and Kobe went to four NBA Finals, winning 3 championships in a row from 2000-02. Jordan and Pippen went to six NBA Finals together, winning all six with two "three-peats" of their own from 1991-93 and 1996-98. Both teams, the '90s Bulls and the 2000s Lakers were coached by Phil Jackson.

I believe the better duo, despite the championship numbers, was Shaq and Kobe. Michael Jordan arrived to the Bulls before Scottie Pippen and Shaq and Kobe both joined the Lakers in 1996 but Kobe didn't become a starter until 1998. When looking at each duo's numbers after Pippen and Kobe became starters on each team, Shaq and Kobe are superior. From 1988-98 Jordan and Pippen combined to average 49.9 ppg, 13.1 rpg, and 10.5 apg. From 1998-04, Shaq and Kobe averaged 52.4 ppg, 17.7 rpg, and 8.3 apg.

Also, I would argue that had they stayed together longer, Shaq and Kobe would have won more championships. Especially since they both won more championships without each other. Shaq won it in 2006 with Dwyane Wade and the Miami Heat. Kobe won back-to-back championships with the Lakers in 2009 and 2010. Had they stayed together, they might've equaled Jordan and Pippen.

The feud between Shaq and Kobe has to be among the most tragic occurences in history. It robbed each man of championships and the fans of a great tandem. Jealousy, greed, and just plain stupidity is to blame. But nonetheless, what makes them great is that neither player can be defended. How do you stop and 7'1" 300 pound beast like Shaq and a relentless, never-say-die assassin like Kobe? Two legends of the game where both guys were the Alpha-male, as opposed to Jordan and Pippen where Jordan was the clear Alpha. Shaq has called himself and Kobe "The greatest 1-2 punch ever created."