The Los Angeles Lakers were unwilling to pay Shaquille O'Neal the type of contract he sought in 2004.

Jerry Buss informed O'Neal of the Lakers' position and that triggered what was believed to be at the time as a trade request at least partially due to O'Neal's deteriorating relationship with Kobe Bryant. The Lakers were also contending with Bryant's free agency that offseason.

O'Neal was traded to the Miami Heat and he helped them win a title two years later in 2006.

“He called me and said hey we’re going to do something else, and I understood that,” O’Neal said. “Me being a marketing genius that I am, I wanted it to look like something else, but it really was never that.”

O'Neal remained close with Jerry Buss and his relationship with Bryant has improved with each passing year.