NBA - Shaq calls time on glittering career [videos]

ORLANDO (NBA) - The Diesel, Shaq Fu, Superman, The Big Daddy, The Big Shaqtus, The Big Shamrock.

Whatever name he was going under at the time, Shaquille O'Neal was a man who demanded attention throughout a career that came to an end on Wednesday.

He will make the announcement formally at a press conference on Friday.

Best known simply as 'Shaq', the veteran center formally announced his retirement after a 19-year NBA career that produced four championships, three with the Los Angeles Lakers and one with the Miami Heat.

"Father time has caught up with Shaquille O'Neal" he told ESPN's SportsCenter.

"I'm going to miss the competition, I'm going to miss, you know, the chase for the ring. You know, I'm going to miss everything."

O'Neal, 39, was a 15-time All Star who amassed 28,596 points, ranking him fifth all-time in the NBA. He is a lock to be inducted in the Naismith Hall of Fame.

The top pick in the 1992 NBA draft by the Orlando Magic, he was a star right away, winning the Rookie of the Year award and being named as a starter in the 1993 All-Star Game.

In his last season - which saw another championship run fall short for the Boston Celtics when they lost to the Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference semi-finals - Shaq struggled with an Achilles problem.

O'Neal's trophy haul also includes a gold medal from the 1994 FIBA World Championship and 1996 Olympics in Atlanta, when he was a member of the USA's "Dream Team III".

He bows out with one year left on his Celtics contract. Boston was his sixth NBA team.

After spending his first four seasons with the Magic, he became a bonafide superstar while leading the Lakers to a three-peat of championships between 2000 and 2002, being named Finals MVP on each occasion.

He left LA in 2004 when tension within the camp forced his departure to the Miami Heat.

After winning his fourth championship in South Beach in 2006, he made a number of short-term stops, playing for the Phoenix Suns, Cleveland Cavaliers and Boston in the final years of his career.

This past season saw injuries catch up with him, and he chose to make an exit now rather than have the situation repeat itself next year.

"I really, really thought about coming back," he said, "but this Achilles is very damaged and if I had it done, the recovery would be so long we'd have the same outcome as this last year - everyone sitting around and waiting for me.

"I didn't want to let people down two years in a row. I didn't want to hold Boston hostage again.

"I'm letting everybody know now so Danny (Ainge) and the organisation can try to get younger talent.

"I would love to come back, but they say once the Achilles is damaged it's never the same. I don't want to take that chance."

The Lakers announced they will retire O'Neal's #34 jersey to the rafters, making him the eighth player in franchise history to have that honour.

He will join the illustrious company of Lakers greats such as Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Wilt Chamberlain and Jerry West.

Shaq announces his retirement via Twitter

FIBA