Shaquille O’Neal has never done things small, not on the basketball court, not in his garage, and certainly not when paying tribute to his late friend and teammate Kobe Bryant. Back in August, the 7-foot-1 NBA legend teamed up with Effortless Motors in Riverside, California, to bring new life to a very special vehicle: Bryant’s 1996 Toyota Land Cruiser, the humble SUV he drove during his final year of high school before making the leap to the NBA.

The restoration is a heartfelt nod to Kobe’s beginnings, a reminder of how far he came, and a way for Shaq to honor the bond they shared.

A Sentimental Project

Kobe’s Land Cruiser had been sitting for years, showing its age through rust, worn leather, and a faded black wrap that covered its original paint. Shaq commissioned Effortless Motors to return it to factory specification, including a respray in Dark Emerald Pearl, the period-correct green remembered by the Bryant family. The shop painstakingly revived original trim, plastics, and interior details rather than modernizing them, the goal was authenticity, not customization.

The project was timed as a tribute to Kobe’s birthday, with the fully restored Land Cruiser presented to his mother, Pam Bryant. For Shaq, it was about preserving a piece of Kobe’s personal history.

Shaq’s Car Legacy

While this Land Cruiser restoration is about Kobe, it also fits neatly into Shaq’s larger automotive narrative. Known for his love of wild builds, O’Neal has often needed shops to modify cars to fit his giant frame. Effortless Motors recently stretched his Corvette Z06 by 20 inches so he could actually enjoy driving it. Years earlier, he famously cut a Ferrari in half and widened it to accommodate his size, turning a dream car into something uniquely his own.

That makes his approach to Kobe’s Land Cruiser all the more striking: Shaq avoided any modifications and insisted on period accuracy. Instead of a larger seat or reworked interior, the SUV remains exactly as Kobe would have driven it in 1996.

Why the Land Cruiser Matters

Back in the mid-1990s, the Toyota Land Cruiser was already an icon. It combined rugged off-road ability with upscale comfort, the sort of vehicle a teenage Kobe, already a superstar in the making, could appreciate as both practical and aspirational. That legacy continues today, with Toyota still leaning heavily on the model’s reputation for toughness and longevity. In fact, Toyota recently launched a 2025 Land Cruiser 1958 lease deal to highlight the SUV’s enduring appeal.

Restoring Kobe’s old Land Cruiser underscores that link between past and present: a young athlete’s first real car, brought back to life by one of his closest NBA contemporaries, at a time when Toyota is once again celebrating the Land Cruiser name.

A Tribute on Wheels

Shaq has always been larger than life, both on and off the court, but this project highlights a quieter, more thoughtful side of the NBA legend. Instead of pouring his energy into another outrageous personal build, he chose to invest in something deeply meaningful: Kobe Bryant’s very first car.

By restoring the Land Cruiser rather than chasing spectacle, Shaq helped preserve a piece of Bryant family history. The finished SUV now stands as more than just a vehicle, it’s a rolling memorial, a tangible reminder of Kobe’s early years, carrying with it the memories of a young teenager on the cusp of becoming not only an NBA superstar but a global icon.