Some basketball historians consider All-NBA selections to be the best guide to determine the legacy of players throughout basketball history. All-NBA selections are a great glimpse into who the most relevant and possibly dominant players are during a give season of the NBA. While not perfect (keep reading about Shaq’s All-NBA legacy), there’s a lot of truth to it. Fifteen players are named each year to the First, Second and Third All-NBA teams.
Orlando All-NBA Selections
The Orlando Magic have had only four players ever be named to All-NBA selections: Dwight Howard, Shaquille O’Neal, Penny Hardaway and Tracy McGrady.
| Player | First Team All-NBA | Second Team All-NBA | Third Team All-NBA |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dwight Howard | 5x (2007-08, 2008-09, 2009-10, 2010-11, 2011-12) | 1x (2006-07) | |
| Shaquille O’Neal | 1x (1994-95) | 2x (1993-94, 1994-95) | |
| Anfernee (Penny) Hardaway | 2x (1994-95, 1995-96) | 1x (1996-97) | |
| Tracy McGrady | 2x (2001-02, 2002-03) | 2x (2000-01, 2003-04) |
Should Shaq have more All-NBA honors from his time in Orlando?
Penny has two First Team selections during his time in Orlando, and Shaq has none? Is something wrong here?
Possibly, but it’s important to remember that the NBA had a number of very famous and very good big men during the time when Shaq entered the league. We can take a closer look at the All-NBA selections during these early seasons to flesh out what was going on.
| Season | First Team Center | Second Team Center | Third Team Center | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1992-93 | Hakeem Olajuwon 26.1 points 13.0 rebounds 4.2 blocks 55 wins | Patrick Ewing 24.2 points 12.1 rebounds 2.0 blocks 60 wins | David Robinson 23.4 points 11.7 rebounds 3.2 blocks 49 wins | Shaquille O’Neal stats 23.4 points 13.9 rebounds 3.5 blocks 41 wins |
| 1993-94 | Hakeem Olajuwon 27.3 points 11.9 rebounds 3.7 blocks 58 wins NBA MVP, NBA Champion | David Robinson 29.8 points 10.7 rebounds 3.3 blocks 55 wins | Shaquille O’Neal 29.3 points 13.2 rebounds 2.9 blocks 50 wins | |
| 1994-95 | David Robinson 27.6 points 10.8 rebounds 3.2 blocks 62 wins NBA MVP | Shaquille O’Neal 29.4 points 11.4 rebounds 2.4 blocks 57 wins | Hakeem Olajuwon 27.8 points 10.8 rebounds 3.4 blocks 47 wins NBA Champion | |
| 1995-96 | David Robinson 25.0 points 12.2 rebounds 3.3 blocks 59 wins | Hakeem Olajuwon 26.9 points 10.9 rebounds 2.9 blocks 48 wins | Shaquille O’Neal 26.6 points 11.0 rebounds 2.1 blocks ***54 games played 60 wins |
As the above details show, the likes of David Robinson, Hakeem Olajuwon and Patrick Ewing were often in the way of young Shaq with respect to All-NBA Selections. Not only were Olajuwon and Robinson especially putting up comparable stats with Shaq during these years, they were also on dominant teams.
It’s possible to argue that Shaq’s 1994-95 Second Team All-NBA should have been a First Team selection ahead of David Robinson. Shaq’s stats this year were astounding and Orlando’s 57 wins is close enough to the Spurs’ 62 wins to make it an argument. David Robinson won the league MVP this year, however, so it’s not difficult to see how voters slotted the Admiral ahead of the Big Diesel.
The 1995-96 season probably should have been Shaq’s rise to First Team status, but due to injuries he only played 54 games that season.