Shaq: LeBron and AD are creating their own legacy

Shaquille O'Neal and the late Kobe Bryant cemented themselves as arguably the greatest duo in NBA history, winning three straight championships with the Los Angeles Lakers in the early 2000s.

Nearly 20 years later and coming off their first title together, LeBron James and Anthony Davis are beginning to forge their own legacy as a dominant pairing with the purple and gold.

As James and Davis prepare to embark on their second season together, O'Neal believes the current Lakers stars shouldn't be measured against the success of him and Bryant.

"There will never be the next (Shaq and Kobe)," O'Neal told ESPN's Ohm Youngmisuk.

"... Kobe and I, (our) legacy will never be duplicated. Or imitated," the Hall of Fame center added. "We don't want to get into the situation where they can be the next us because there will never be a next us. Magic (Johnson) and Kareem (Abdul-Jabbar) can never be us. We could never be Magic and Kareem. And we can never be LeBron and AD."

James and Davis are in an excellent position to add more championships in the immediate future. The former agreed to a two-year, $85-million extension with the Lakers this offseason, while the latter re-signed on a max contract to remain in Los Angeles for the next five campaigns.