Shaquille O’Neal’s analyst career at TNT has won him quite the plaudits. His insightful analysis of the sport has made him one of the top NBA experts over the years, and quite recently, he revealed why he picked Turner over ESPN for his post-ball career.
The former Los Angeles Lakers legend was candid about picking TNT, where he’s a household name alongside Ernie Johnson, Kenny Smith, and Charles Barkley.
The fourth and final episode of his HBO docuseries, ‘Shaq’ saw him discuss his retirement and how he planned to chart a new career path as an NBA analyst. Unsurprisingly. he did have offers from multiple networks. He had told the media that he was keen on offering more to the sport.
“I will miss you, but I do plan on entertaining you for the next 19 years. Whether it’s TNT, ESPN, CNN, whoever wants to hire me. My offices open up on Monday, give me a call.”
And O’Neal eventually received a call, and he set up meetings along with Turner executives David Levy and Steve Koonin, as well as ESPN’s then-President John Skipper.
Why Did Shaquille O’Neal Not Join ESPN As An Analyst?
It appears that O’Neal knew what he was getting into when he signed with TNT. Earlier, ESPN was in the news for the Rachel Nichols controversy. The scandal put both the journalist and the network in the spotlight for the wrong reasons.
In his docu, he spoke about how he picked the network over ESPN and was rather blunt in his statement.
“My worst day at Turner would be a good day,” O’Neal said during SHAQ. “My worst day at ESPN would cause me to get fired.” (via Awful Announcing)
So far, it’s all been fun and solid work from the former NBA star for Turner. ‘Inside The NBA’ has been one of the more regularly-watched sports shows, and they come with copious doses of game analysis and hilarious banter. Recently, he and the other hosts inked long-term deals with the network. Safe to say O’Neal will be sticking around with the network for a good while.
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