O’Neal missed 28 games in the 1995-96 season, forcing Hardaway to step up his role with the Magic. Hardaway once again increased his scoring to a career-best 21.7 points per game, while O’Neal added 26. Both were named to the All-Star game for the second-straight season, but Orlando missed out on returning to the NBA Finals when they were swept by the Chicago Bulls in the Eastern Conference Finals. In the offseason, citing his interests in acting and music, O’Neal left Orlando for the Los Angeles Lakers as a free agent. Hardaway would stay with the Magic through the 1998-99 season, but never quite put up the same numbers as he did when playing with O’Neal. The two would reunite briefly in 2007 with the Miami Heat at the end of Hardaway’s career.
Pictured: Orlando Magic’s Shaquille O’Neal, left, Anfernee Hardaway, Dennis Scott and coach Brian Hill quietly watch the action during the fourth quarter against the Chicago Bulls Sunday, May 19, 1996, in Chicago.
(CHARLES BENNETT / AP)