Lakers News: Former LA Player Acquired in Shaq-Heat Trade Recalls Realizing He'd Be Dealt

This was a trade for the ages that altered both franchises.

Dec 18, 2023; Los Angeles, California, USA; The Los Angeles Lakers logo at center court at the Crypto.com Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports / Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

The Los Angeles Lakers acquire superstars. They have shown their unwavering desire to acquire a star, whether that is via free agency or trade. The two superstars they have on their team now, LeBron James and Anthony Davis, were acquired this way. 

If the Lakers don't have homegrown talent, you better believe they will do all they can to get a star on their team. 

It's rare for the Lakers to trade a star player, especially one of mega-star status. However, there are exceptions. One such instance was in the summer of 2004 when the purple and gold made the difficult decision to trade Hall of Famer Shaquille O'Neal to the Miami Heat. 

It wasn't a move the Lakers or O'Neal wanted, but the two sides couldn't overcome their disagreements. 

Nonetheless, the Lakers made the tough decision to trade O'Neal, and in return, they got three players and a first-round pick. One of the players dumped in the trade was former first-round pick Brian Grant. 

In a recent podcast appearance on, Legends Lounge with Trill Withers, Grant revisited the trade to Los Angeles for O'Neal from his perspective. 

"I was in my, I was in Ohio visiting my parents," said Grant. "Should I take the kids and we go out there and stay for two weeks, get a bunch of fireworks, usually on the fourth. But, I remember watching TV and Shaq saying, there's only two places I'd go to Miami or Dallas, and I was like, oh, we got to pack the bags when we're home because it wasn't going to work, it was only going to work if they absorbed Eddie's (Eddie Jones) contract or my contract."

Grant, along with Caron Butler and legendary Laker Lamar Odom, was involved in the trade. While Butler made his stamp in his first and only season as a Laker, Gran't time was less impressive. In his lone season as a Laker, Grant averaged 3.8 points per game, 3.7 rebounds, and 0.5 assists while shooting 49.3 percent from the field and 72.2 percent from the free throw line. 

The Ohio native spent the previous four seasons in Miami. Grant was also a member of the Sacramento Kings and Portland Trailblazers. After his lone season in L.A., the Lakers released Grant, and he spent his last ever NBA season as a Phoneix Sun. 

The former Xavier Musketeer spent 12 seasons in the NBA. 

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