Born in '72, Shaquille O'Neal was now 36 years old.
He was well aware that he had reached the end of his professional career.
This year, after failing to take down Jason Kidd and the "Pistons' 4 Tigers" in the playoffs, he became acutely conscious of that fact.
At this juncture, hearing about Kobe's championship and seeing the media turn him into a clown deeply affected him.
He knew he had to hold onto the last vestiges of his prime.
The thought of seeking a buyout from the Brooklyn Nets crept into his mind and refused to be suppressed.
Billy King's reaction to his buyout request hurt him once more.
Although he was mentally prepared, he hadn't anticipated Billy King's agreement would come so readily.
He really was getting old!
Shaquille realized this, yet again.
Both parties were of the same mind, so negotiations quickly entered the tug-of-war phase.
