Tag: shaquille o’neal

Shaquille O’Neal: GOAT debate comes down to Michael Jordan, LeBron James and Kobe Bryant

Does late Lakers legend Kobe Bryant get disrespected when people debate the greatest players in NBA history?

The debate of who is the greatest player in NBA history is supposed to be nuanced. However, in recent years, it has boiled down to two men: Michael Jordan and LeBron James.

For many years, Jordan was considered the consensus pick because he won six world championships and 10 scoring titles while never losing in the NBA Finals. But an increasing number of people believe James is the greatest player, as shown by two recent polls done by HoopsHype and The Athletic.

However, one incredible legend who always gets disrespected in this debate is the late great Kobe Bryant. He drove the Los Angeles Lakers to five rings and had an array of individual accomplishments, and no one will ever forget his legacy or impact.

Shaquille O’Neal, his Lakers teammate on three of those championship squads, said on his podcast “The Big Podcast” that Bryant should be right there in the GOAT debate along with Jordan and James.

“The only thing I don’t like about the (GOAT) conversation is that they don’t put my boy’s name (Kobe) in it. If you’re gonna be throwing names around, you gotta have my boy’s name in it. That’s like saying, ‘What are the best luxury cars out there: Lexus or Beemer? You gotta put the Mercedes in there, too. Mike, LeBron, or Kobe, now y’all debate.”

Many of today’s NBA stars cite Bryant as a big influence or even a mentor. When he and eight others were killed in a tragic helicopter crash in 2020, there was a massive outpouring of bereavement, not to mention a massive tribute to his accomplishments and the mark he left on sports.

Shaquille O’Neal offers high praise for Candace Parker after her retirement

Former LSU basketball star Shaquille O’Neal had kinds words with Candace Parker following her retirement .

Former LSU basketball player [autotag]Shaquille O’Neal[/autotag] had some kind words for Candace Parker following her recent retirement announcement.

Parker joined TNT’s “Inside the NBA” on Wednesday night to talk with Shaq and the crew.

“I just want to say: you know how I feel about you. I love you. I’m so proud of you. Good luck in your new endeavor. And I appreciate our friendship very much and I’m so proud of you,” O’Neal said.

Parker replied, thanking O’Neal for being a role model.

“I’m trying to be a businesswoman, like you, so thank you for raising the bar and continuing to be a great friend and partner for me,” Parker said.

Parker is hanging it up after 16 seasons in the WNBA. The former first-overall pick from Tennessee averaged 16 points and 8.5 rebounds per game over her lengthy career.

She won MVP twice and finished top five in voting 10 times.

Shaq played three seasons with LSU from 1989-92. He was one of the nation’s most dominant players throughout his time in Baton Rouge, averaging 21.6 points per game.

Contact/Follow us @LSUTigersWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Louisiana State news, notes, and opinions.

Shaq rips Shannon Sharpe after criticism for that awkward Nikola Jokic MVP interview, starting up some beef

BEEF!

Move over, Kendrick Lamar and Drake. We have some new beef to discuss.

Shaquille O’Neal’s awkward interview with Nikola Jokic went viral for all the wrong reasons — he told the now-three-time MVP and said he thought Shai Gilgeous-Alexander should have won. Jokic took it in stride, but it wasn’t the best.

Shannon Sharpe proceeded to go in on Shaq on The Nightcap podcast, talking all about how O’Neal was envious of a big man getting that many MVPs and discussing why the former center isn’t in the GOAT conversation.

That triggered O’Neal, who took to Instagram with a lengthy rebuttal, and WHEW.

Here’s the Sharpe clip:

And here’s Shaq:

https://www.instagram.com/reel/C6xq7dWMPwn/?hl=en

https://www.instagram.com/reel/C6x5qUXO-U8/?hl=en

BEEF!

Shaq had a beautiful message for Candace Parker after announcing her retirement

This was lovely.

Candace Parker has retired from the WNBA, and now she’s off to be the president of Adidas women’s basketball.

And after we’ve seen her be awesome on TV with the Inside the NBA crew on TNT, which has included some must-see moments between her and Shaquille O’Neal, she got a lovely tribute with Shaq on Wednesday night.

He started off singing Hail to the Chief and then talked about how he appreciated their friendship and that he loves her and appreciates their friendship. And then she explained why she was leaving the game behind.

This is just lovely, especially after what we saw Shaq do to Nikola Jokic earlier.

Inside the NBA played Kendrick Lamar’s Euphoria and Charles Barkley and Co. had funny reactions

They’re in the middle of a rap beef now.

The Kendrick Lamar and Drake beef has spilled over into the sports world … sort of.

After Lamar dropped Euphoria, the diss track that had the world buzzing about how badly he ripped on Drake, the folks at Inside the NBA decided to play it on Wednesday night as halftime started between the Los Angeles Clippers and Dallas Mavericks in their playoff game.

The reaction?

“Y’all putting us in the middle of the rap beef!” remarked Kenny Smith.

Charles Barkley simply added, “Grown-[butt] men.” LOL!

NBA fans noticed and had a bit of a laugh over it on X (formerly Twitter):

 

JJ Redick brutally roasted Shaq for not being able to dunk in high school despite being 7-feet tall

Poor Shaq wasn’t always SHAQ.

We all know Shaquille O’Neal, a.k.a. Shaq, as one of the most recognizable basketball personalities. We also understood he got to this point because he was one of the most dominant big men in NBA history.

What we didn’t know was that Shaq wasn’t always SHAQ.

RELATED: Shaq thinks Caitlin Clark is the GOAT of women’s basketball.

In the latest episode of The Big Podcast, O’Neal and former NBA player and current analyst and podcaster JJ Redick touched on their beginnings as basketball players. The conversation eventually reaches a point about when both first dunked a ball. Redick admitted that he hit a big growth spurt as a teenager and could then dunk with two hands. O’Neal, meanwhile, didn’t believe it. He said he couldn’t dunk until he was 17, despite being 6-foot-11.

Uh, what?

Naturally, this reveal caught Redick off guard, who inadvertently roasted the Hall of Famer with a shocked comment:

Look, it all worked out for O’Neal in the end, anyway. After growing into the game, he eventually helped his high school team in San Antonio win a state championship. He then parlayed that into becoming a two-time All-American and 1991 Men’s National Player of the Year honors at LSU.

After that, well, you know the rest.

O’Neal went on to become an all-time dominant big man in the NBA, qualifying for 15 All-Star teams while winning four championships with the Los Angeles Lakers (3) and the Miami Heat (1). And he did a lot of that while dunking the heck out of the basketball on so many defenders who had no business guarding him.

Which … is kinda funny when you think about a very tall, inexperienced, and young O’Neal not actually being able to dunk. I guess we truly all gotta somewhere, folks.

Charles Barkley and Shaq roasted Kendrick Perkins for questioning how much basketball they actually watch

Charles Barkley and Shaq quickly put Kendrick Perkins in his place.

Note to self: Never question the professionalism or acumen of two Hall of Famers on any sort of nationally syndicated program. (Especially if it just seems like you’re pandering to a major media market.)

This is an important lesson ESPN’s Kendrick Perkins apparently needs to learn.

On Monday, the former NBA big man hopped on the Michael Kay Show to discuss the New York Knicks’ upcoming playoff prospects. During his conversation, Perkins called out TNT’s Charles Barkley and Shaquille O’Neal for only watching NBA basketball when their network is broadcasting games. As it pertains to the Knicks specifically, who, again, play in New York, Perkins isn’t convinced the TNT duo has seen much of them:

“It’s obvious (that) they don’t watch basketball,” Perkins said on the Michael Kay Show. “I’m serious. They can’t watch basketball on a consistent basis. The only time they actually probably watch the Knicks is when they’re covering the Knicks on their game nights.”

Hoo boy. That is probably not something Perkins should’ve said about his peers on a public platform. Needless to say, Barkley and O’Neal caught wind of his critique and blasted the former role-player center during TNT’s first broadcast of the 2024 NBA Play-In Tournament.

How? They used the news of Blake Griffin retiring from the league to showcase one of his more famous dunks… on Perkins. Then they quickly made reference to Perkins punching up to two all-time greats out of the blue:

If Perkins’ intent was to ruffle some feathers of fellow national NBA broadcasters, he clearly succeeded. He probably should’ve kept his thoughts to the Knicks, though.

LSU’s Seimone Augustus inducted into Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame

Seimone Augustus becomes the first LSU women’s player selected for the Hall of Fame.

Former LSU women’s basketball star [autotag]Seimone Augustus[/autotag] was inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame on Saturday. She becomes the first-ever Tigers women’s player to receive that honor.

She joins coaches [autotag]Sue Gunter[/autotag], [autotag]Van Chancellor[/autotag] and [autotag]Kim Mulkey[/autotag] as well as men’s players [autotag]Shaquille O’Neal[/autotag], [autotag]Bob Petit[/autotag] and [autotag]Pete Maravich[/autotag] in the Hall.

“When you think about all the qualities involved in being a Hall of Fame player, no one checks all the boxes like Seimone,” LSU Associate Head Coach Bob Starkey said in a release. “But what brings me the most pride is that she was a hall of fame person and teammate as well — I know of no one more deserving.”

The Baton Rouge native played at LSU from 2002-06, being named the national Player of the Year in each of her final two seasons. The first overall pick in the WNBA draft, she won four league titles with the Minnesota Lynx before the eight-time all-star finished her career with the Los Angeles Sparks.

She also later spent the 2021-22 season as an assistant with the Sparks.

Augustus’ enshrinement into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame will take place from August 16-17.

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Shaq battles USWNT stars Rodman, Shaw in studio penalty shootout

This was a battle for the ages

It was a battle for the ages in the TNT studio, as U.S. women’s national team duo Trinity Rodman and Jaedyn Shaw took on Shaquille O’Neal in a penalty shootout.

The basketball legend went in goal during the network’s NBA post-game show, as he looked to compensate for his lack of goalkeeper ability with his obvious size advantages.

Rodman stepped up first against “Uncle Shaq” — a figure she knows through her father, former Chicago Bulls star Dennis Rodman. The USWNT winger attempted to go down the middle, a strategy that is perhaps more advantageous when the goalkeeper is likely to dive.

Point, Shaq.

Shaw took a more traditional approach, and her low penalty to the side of the massive figure in net was too tough to save.

The USWNT pair’s appearance was part of some good old-fashioned cross-promotion, as TNT is set to broadcast the USA’s SheBelieves Cup opener against Japan on Saturday. The USWNT’s second and final SheBelieves game on Tuesday, against either Brazil or Canada, will be on TBS.

Watch Rodman, Shaw face Shaq

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Jon Anik recounts time Shaquille O’Neal fired him up before delivering UFC intro

Shaquille O’Neal had Jon Anik starstruck right before he was about to go on the air.

NBA legend [autotag]Shaquille O’Neal[/autotag] had [autotag]Jon Anik[/autotag] starstruck right before he was about to go on the air.

The UFC’s lead play-by-play commentator was unexpectedly greeted by O’Neal as he was getting ready to deliver an intro during a UFC event – a moment that remains memorable for him to this day.

“I’ve had one moment like that, and I will never forget it because he’s one of my all-time favorite athletes,” Anik told MMA Junkie Radio. “So I wasn’t doing the standard pay-per-view open, but you may have noticed over the last two years or so, I’ll have certain situations during the broadcast where I do like a standup on camera where I’m sort of close to the crowd, and I’ll memorize something, and then I’ll deliver it and throw to a feature.

“So I’m getting ready in my standup position to do one of these, and I look down, and there’s a big hand reaching out to, like, give me a fist bump. It’s Shaquille O’Neal. If that doesn’t fire you up to fist bump that dude and then deliver to camera, right? I’m not sure how I delivered. It was probably one of the greatest deliveries of my life, right? It gave me a lot of confidence, the good kind of nerves. …Only one real instance where a celebrity was, you know, in sort of my frame of mind as I was just about to deliver something, and that would be the great Shaquille O’Neal.”

You can watch Anik’s full interview in the video below.

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