Shaquille O’Neal isn’t someone to be impressed easily, and he isn’t known to give any props to players all that often, either. O’Neal has, in fact, built up a reputation for being a hater, and on the latest episode of The Big Podcast with Shaq, he revealed that there are two players who have actually managed to pass his “hate test.”
“I like Luka, Luka can play,” Shaq said. “If you could pass my hate test and then still go… Like Steph Curry, I was like, ‘That s**t lucky.’ He keep doing it, ‘That s**t lucky.’ Find the point. Alright, this motherf***er can play. I used to hate Luka until I seen him play. I’m like, ‘This motherf***ing white boy alright.'”
“Remember, I done played with some of the greatest, so it ain’t a lot of new s*** that you can do,” O’Neal stated. “So, if you do that consistently and then pick it up, then I’ll give you props.”
Both Luka Doncic and Stephen Curry deserve all the praise in the world. They are exceptional talents, and even O’Neal couldn’t help but admire the two after one point.
Doncic is averaging 27.2 points, 8.3 rebounds, 7.8 assists, 1.6 steals, and 0.5 blocks per game for the Los Angeles Lakers in 2024-25. He has firmly established himself as one of the best in the business by making the All-NBA First Team in each of the last five seasons.
As for Curry, he is averaging 24.8 points, 4.4 rebounds, 6.0 assists, 1.2 steals, and 0.4 blocks per game for the Golden State Warriors this season. He is the second greatest player of his generation after LeBron James and has his eyes set on winning his fifth title in 2025.
While O’Neal still doesn’t shower Doncic with a lot of praise, he speaks glowingly of Curry from time to time. Back in March, O’Neal demanded that fans put Curry in the GOAT conversation. He didn’t go as far as to call the Warriors superstar the greatest player ever, but he wants his name to be in the mix.
Also in this episode, O’Neal claimed that Curry is more influential than James. The two-time MVP certainly has won him over by now.
Shaquille O’Neal Explains Why He Loves Stephen Curry
You’d be shocked that O’Neal has a reputation for being a hater if you just listen to him talk about Curry. He has nothing but positive things to say about the superstar guard, and that’s not the case with any other player. Why is that the case? Well, O’Neal explained why he loves Curry.
“You know why I love Steph Curry? Because I’ve never seen that before… If you saw Steph on the street, he ain’t got the LeBron muscles, he’s not 6’9″, 6’10”. He looks like a perfectly normal office guy. He’s doing stuff that people never seen before.”
You certainly will impress O’Neal if you do something that he has never seen before. There has never been a shooter like Curry, and the fact that he is able to dominate games despite not being the least bit imposing physically impresses the Hall of Famer. A player with Curry’s physical traits should not be anywhere near as great as he is, and yet he has been an unstoppable force for over a decade.
