Shaquille O'Neal Advises LeBron Not to Make Same Mistakes: His 'Book Is Already Set'

Hall of Fame center Shaquille O'Neal has some solid career advice for Cleveland Cavaliers forward Lebron James and he's speaking from personal experience.

Shaquille O'Neal has some solid career advice for Lebron James and he's speaking from personal experience.

The retired Hall of Fame center spent the last few seasons of his 19-year career chasing championships and hopping from team to team. He does not want James, 33, to make the same mistake.

In an interview with ESPN on Friday night, O'Neal explained, "My problem toward the end of my career was I was trying to shut everybody up and I was greedy. After I got to three [titles], everybody was saying I couldn't get another. So I got four. After I got the fourth, they were saying I couldn't get another one. So I was trying to make quick stops to get it.  Phoenix, Cleveland, Boston."

When O'Neal was with the Los Angeles Lakers, he earned three titles. He managed to take home one more with Miami but didn't win in the final three years of his career.

O'Neal continued to say, "Somebody told me a long time ago -- they said your book is already set. You can add index pages toward the end, but your book is already set. So LeBron's book is already set. He done already passed up legends, he done already made his mark -- he has three rings. His mentality now is probably is: I want to get four before Steph [Curry] does. That's probably his mentality now. But if I was him, I wouldn't be trying to get four, five and six because it ain't going to matter. It's just something else to talk about, something else to add to the pages. He's a legend, talked about as who is the best between him and Michael Jordan so he's set."

James, who has 15 years with the NBA under his belt, may test free agency this summer if he decides to decline the player option of his contract. He has to let the Cavaliers know by June 29 whether or not he will opt out of the last year of his contract.

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