'None of us know what the hell we're going to do t...

THIRTY-ONE YEARS SEPARATED two Game 7 postgame huddles, each just after the buzzer of epic conference finals. In both, a generational big man and former No. 1 pick was filled with emotion after surviving a seven-game series, having just led a group of players with no playoff experience together into the Finals in just his third season. More than three decades ago, it was Shaquille O'Neal with his massive arms pulling Dennis Scott, Anthony Avent and, surprisingly, mascot Stuff the Magic Dragon in, celebrating the Orlando Magic's victory over the Indiana Pacers in a grueling 1995 Eastern Conference finals. In the other, just last week, Victor Wembanyama wrapped his long arms around Stephon Castle, Carter Bryant and Keldon Johnson as he led the San Antonio Spurs over two-time MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the reigning champion Oklahoma City Thunder. The one difference: The Spurs' celebration in OKC was in front of stunned silence. Back inside the long-since razed O-rena in 1995, Magic fans basked in the sounds of Jock Jams as streamers flew. Each player was an imposing figure who the NBA had never seen before. Each has lifted their youthful teams to the precipice of NBA glory. Because of that, Wembanyama and O'Neal are linked at this juncture of their careers despite their 30-year removal from each other. "He's Shaq," one veteran NBA head coach of Wembanyama said. "He eats clean, worries about how his water is filtered and doesn't break backboards like Shaq did, but he presents the same problem. None of us know what the hell we're going to do to stop him." The 1995 Finals were the beginning of the Shaq era in the NBA. What it ultimately became was not the linear domination that some had feared or predicted -- partially due to O'Neal changing teams, health issues and the rise of Tim Duncan. Still, the 7-foot-2, 300-pound big man went to six Finals between 1995 to 2006 and won four titles. And like with O'Neal in 1995, these Finals might indeed be an ushering in another era, again led by another imposing figure, this time a 7-foot-4 center-guard with an unprecedented arsenal of skills. How deep it goes and how long it might last is where the drama comes in. THE 1995 MAGIC were smashed in the Finals by the defending champion Houston Rockets, with in his prime Hakeem Olajuwon outplaying O'Neal. The sixth-seeded Rockets were the underdogs but pulled off a string of upsets. After sweeping Orlando, Hall of Fame coach Rudy Tomjanovich famously declared: "Don't ever underestimate the heart of a champion!" Years later, O'Neal admitted some blame for the showing, saying that he and his young teammates were guilty of celebrating and partying too aggressively in the days leading up to the Finals. He said he learned from it and never made the mistake again. "I feel like I'm immune to the distractions like partying, alcohol, drugs," Wembanyama said in an interview with the Ringer in 2024. "Why would I ever do that?" Wembanyama avoids alcohol and only consumes plant-based sports drinks. Earlier this season, he knocked a sports drink that contains sugar off a table in front of him before an interview, declaring, "Oh, hell no." "Of course people are going to compare him to Shaq but he's actually Shaq 2.0," a rival general manager said. "Because he takes care of his body and plays a modern game, shoots the 3 and can make free throws. Yeah, he's our nightmare." The Knicks are back in the NBA Finals for the first time since 1999, and they'll face the same opponent they did then, the Spurs. Watch the NBA Finals on ABC and the ESPN app. Game 1: June 3 at Spurs Game 2: June 5 at Spurs Game 3: June 8 at Knicks Game 4: June 10 at Knicks Game 5*: June 13 at Spurs Game 6*: June 16 at Knicks Game 7*: June 19 at Spurs * if necessary All games tip off at 8:30 p.m. ET. O'Neal averaged 29.3 points, 11.4 rebounds, 2.4 blocks and shot 58% in the 1994-95 season while playing 79 games. He finished second in the MVP voting. Wembanyama averaged 25 points, 11.5 rebounds and 3.1 blocks while shooting 51% and playing in 64 games. He finished third. O'Neal missed 511 free throws in the regular season and playoffs (he made 54%) and made no 3-pointers. Wembanyama has missed 78 free throws (he's making 84%) and made 152 3-pointers so far in the regular season and playoffs. O'Neal only missed four games over his first three seasons, Wembanyama has missed 65. Over the following three years, O'Neal missed 81 as he started to deal with injury problems. These stylistic and lifestyle differences, which are partly generational and partly cultural, as one grew up in a nomadic military family and the other outside Paris, are only part of the story. The Spurs, naturally, hope their big man's first NBA Finals end differently than O'Neal's. Their Finals opponent, the New York Knicks, are not like the 1995 Rockets. They're built around the smallest player on the floor, star Jalen Brunson, and they carry the burden of representing a franc

'None of us know what the hell we're going to do t...

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