Shaquille O'Neal Reacts to Kobe Bryant's Amazing Feat

Shaquille O'Neal hasn't always been Kobe Bryant's biggest fan.

It was even downright awkward at times during the pair's time with the Los Angeles Lakers. Apparently time away from each other has changed some things, however, as Shaq was appreciative when his former teammate passed him on the scoring list on Monday night.

The Big Shaqtus took to Twitter to congratulate Bryant for moving into fifth place:

Bryant got the accomplishment out of the way in the second quarter of last night's game against the Philadelphia 76ers. Just like he's done countless times before, Bryant came off a screen and knocked down an open jumper, followed by a quick fist pump to mark the occasion.

While it's impossible to determine O'Neal's sincerity over Twitter, it would be nice to think both guys could let the past remain there so their dominance together can be fully recognized.

With the rise of super teams over the past couple years, the Lakers dynasty led by O'Neal and Bryant could very well turn out to be the last team to win three straight championships for a long, long time. That should be celebrated, not remembered for a rift between the team's two stars.

Shaq has always seemed like a gentle giant, so it's not a surprise to see him make a peace offering first. Now that his career is over, he's probably had some time to sit back and think about all the Lakers were able to do early in the last decade.

That time of reflection, which is still a couple years away for Kobe, probably opened his eyes to the magnitude of their title run together. That's why he was so quick to tweet out his congratulatory message last night, just to make sure nobody started to drum up any unnecessary controversy.

O'Neal and Bryant will never become best friends, but there should be mutual respect like Shaq appeared to show on Monday. That will make it easier to explain the Lakers' tremendous run without the caveat of feuding superstars.

Both guys should want that, so, hopefully, yesterday was a step in the right direction.