Shannon Sharpe didn’t like Shaquille O’Neal’s remarks about LeBron James not being feared by his competition. The King has taken a different approach against rivals, always showing a good face, trying to help the new generation, and pretty much being a cool veteran.
However, that doesn’t mean he’s not trying to destroy rivals and get as many wins as possible. Well, it seems like that’s a big factor for Shaq to say that nobody fears LeBron in the current NBA.
During a recent edition of “The Big Podcast with Shaq,” the 4-time NBA champion claimed that everybody respects LeBron but nobody fears him.
“LeBron is my guy, but nobody was ever scared of LeBron. So, if you’re not scared of a guy, you just have much more confidence. That’s a dangerous guy to play with. They respect him, but they don’t fear him ’cause I can tell, I watched him playing against them, they not scared.”
Sharpe reacted to these comments, calling out Shaq for saying that, breaking down a couple of situations that he believes were created by LeBron James. The former NFL player-turned-analyst went off on Shaq, even reminding him of some of his worst losses.
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“How does a guy get to 10 finals in damn near two decades, but nobody fears him? They dubbed it “LeBronto”. So the Toronto Raptors never feared LeBron James? Is that what Shaq is trying to tell us?”
“In 2007, LeBron James took the Cleveland Cavaliers, a very under-manned Cleveland Cavaliers and beat the Detroit Pistons, and ended their run. Hey Shaq, little info for you, that Detroit Pistons beat you in the finals and ended your run in LA, you don’t think they feared him?”
Sharpe also mentioned that the Boston Celtics created their superteam after a 22-year-old LeBron James led the Cleveland Cavaliers to the Finals. They linked up with Ray Allen and Kevin Garnett and formed a trio that went on to win the championship the next season. Moreover, he talked about the Warriors bringing Kevin Durant out of fear for LeBron.
“Why in the h*ll the Golden State Warriors, got on a plane and disturbed Kevin Durant in the Hamptons if no one feared him? This is why they put this superteam together. They keep talking about LeBron, but Boston put a Big 3 together long before he went to Miami. Why? Because they feared him.”
Shannon then touched on Shaq saying that Giannis Antetokounmpo is more feared than LeBron James right now, taking some big shots at the Big Diesel for ignoring the Los Angeles Lakers superstar in the past 18 years.
“I vividly, vividly disagree with Shaq. He keeps talking about Giannis coming down the hill… Has anyone driven the basketball to the hoop stronger or harder than LeBron James? Shaq, where have you been for the last 18 years? LeBron James was doing what Giannis is doing currently for the last 19 years. And somehow Shaq forgot that. How?”
Sharpe went on an epic rant against O’Neal, who played with LeBron James in Cleveland and has a good relationship with him. Still, O’Neal sees Giannis as the most feared player in the league right now over LBJ.
LeBron has earned a reputation in the league. He’s a menace and even though he’s playing smarter, not harder, many people know that he can be very impactful and still change the outcome of games. Perhaps his current moment has changed the perception of him, but there’s no doubt that a lot of people feared facing LeBron James.
