NBA legend Shaquille O’Neal is far removed from his days dominating on the basketball court, but he continues to make his presence felt in the form of NBA media. On ‘Inside the NBA,’ O’Neal can often be found offering his take on the modern game, which often includes some pretty harsh critiques for the elites.
It has gotten so bad, that O’Neal himself has gotten some heat for being overly critical and some have even called for him to apologize for the various things he said. In a recent chat with Sports Illustrated’s Chris Mannix, however, Shaq responded to those critics and doubled down his approach.
“I’ve never talked about a player bad ’cause I don’t like them. I just give them advice. If you want my advice, cool. If you don’t, it’s fine with me. But it happens. It’s part of the game, but a lot of the time I’m saying it to help you out. If you can’t see that, that’s not my problem. I was sensitive. I tried to shut you guys up by winning. A lot of the time when I speak, I speak from facts. We’re sitting there watching the game. Like if you wanna get to the next round, you got to perform.”
"You want to be known as great, you got to step up."
—@Shaq speaks with @SIChrisMannix about being critical of players today pic.twitter.com/RW0BfesIfk
— The Volume (@TheVolumeSports) May 13, 2023
Shaq is especially hard on big men, and it’s not hard to see why. As a dominant center in his day, O’Neal clearly knows a thing or two about what it takes to dominate the interior, and being able to take criticism to improve your game is a part of that formula.
Can Anthony Davis Listen To Shaq And Lead Lakers To Another Title?
Thanks to the dominant play from Anthony Davis, the Lakers are in a position to make the NBA Finals if they can win four games against the Denver Nuggets. In perhaps their biggest test yet, Davis will be the key if they want to advance and Shaq knows that more than anyone.
“LeBron, he handles the ball a lot. Of course, when he’s not there, everybody’s gonna touch it, everybody’s gonna [touch] it and AD becomes the No. 1 source, the No. 1 go-to-guy,” said O’Neal. “We’ve been saying for the last two years he should be the No. 1 go-to guy, anyway. LeBron is gonna be LeBron but AD should demand the ball, take high-percentage shots and not always take a backseat to LeBron. LeBron is not there, he’s the guy. He’s asking the ball, he’s getting the ball, he’s taking high-percentage shots and his numbers are showing. The question is can he do that with LeBron in the game?”
We will see if O’Neal’s advice pays off for Davis, but don’t expect the Diesel to lighten up either way. As one of the most accomplished players in NBA history, he has earned the right to speak his mind on all things basketball and there’s nothing wrong with trying to give the players a bit of extra motivation.
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