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NBA legend and Hall of Famer Shaquille O’Neal said being the first player to have his jersey retired by the Orlando Magic was ‘definitely unexpected,’ during a press conference on Tuesday.

O’Neal’s No. 32 jersey is set to be the first one retired in franchise history, following Orlando’s game against the Oklahoma City Thunder on Tuesday.

‘It’s definitely unexpected, when we did the Ring of Honor thing, I thought that was it,’ O’Neal said.

‘And then I always thought I’d probably be the second. I always thought you’d go with a guy like Nick Anderson first, since you know he was the first draft pick.’

‘I’m honored to be the first but it’s definitely unexpected. I was not expecting this at all but I’ll take it.

Shaquille O’Neal said having the first jersey retried by the Magic ‘definitely unexpected’

O’Neal expected Nick Anderson #25 to be the first Magic player with his jersey retired

O’Neal began his legendary NBA career by spending four seasons playing for the Magic

‘No. 32 will look very good up there but, I’m much appreciative to you, your staff, the DeVos family but like I said when I came back a couple of years ago for the Ring of Honor thing, I thought that was like what’s going on tonight.’

During his four years in Orlando O’Neal averaged 27.2 points, 12.5 rebounds, and 2.8 blocks through 295 games, while shooting 58.1 percent from the field.

He was named an All-Star in each season he played in a Magic uniform and lifted the Rookie of the Year award during his first season.

O’Neal’s jerseys from his time with the Los Angeles Lakers and Miami Heat have also been retired following his dominance during those stints. 

Anderson, who O’Neal mentioned he thought would be the Magic’s first player to have his jersey retired was the franchise’s first-ever draft pick when they became an expansion team back in 1989.

The No. 11 pick in the 1989 NBA Draft spent 10 seasons playing for the Magic and averaged 15.4 points and 5.3 rebounds during his time in Orlando.