Shaquille O'Neal Reveals Why He Turned Down Knicks

"After I left the Lakers the Knicks was a contender but I turned around because I like driving and you can’t drive in New York,” O'Neal said. "You can’t drive ... I got two big trucks that’ll get tore off in New York ... You can’t park them nowhere. There’s no space for you on the street.”

At the time of O'Neal's California farewell, the Knicks were led by Brooklyn native Stephon Marbury, whose January 2004 arrival in a trade with the Phoenix Suns helped end a two-year playoff drought. The Knicks were swept by the defending finalist New Jersey Nets in the opening round, but there was a sense of newfound hope with Marbury and head coach Lenny Wilkens in tow.

All that and more, however, wasn't enough to land O'Neal, who was sent to the Miami Heat to play with blossoming superstar Dwyane Wade.

Bucked by trucks, the Knicks struggled to keep the momentum alive. Marbury remained fairly consistent but never played another postseason game in a Knicks uniform. Wilkens, who posted a 23-19 record in 2004 after replacing the ousted Don Chaney, resigned just before the midway mark of the following campaign, giving way to the brief yet disastrous Larry Brown era the following year.

While O'Neal flourished in Miami, guiding the franchise to its first champion in 2006, the Knicks sputtered to the tune of six consecutive playoff-free seasons, a streak that only ended when Carmelo Anthony was acquired from the Denver Nuggets in 2011.