Overview

The Los Angeles Lakers dominated the Miami Heat in the early days. They won each of their first ten games between 1988 and 1992. Then, during the late 90s and early 00s, one famous named connected the two – Shaquille O’Neal. The 15-time All Star played for LA between 1996 and 2004. He was key as they won the NBA Championship in 2000, 2001, and 2002 - he won the Finals MVP in all three series. In 2004, he joined the Heat and was part of their 2006 championship team. The two franchises met on the biggest stage for the first time in 2020. They contested the NBA Finals, and it was an epic series which the Lakers won 4-2.