After watching team France take on Brazil this week, Shaquille O’Neal took it upon himself to take shots at a familiar foe. In a story post on Instagram, the Lakers legend trolled Timberwolves big man Rudy Gobert with a Photoshop of him in a Walmart vest.
As one of the greatest centers in basketball history, Shaquille O’Neal is more qualified than most to speak on the league, its players, and the game as a whole. When it comes to the frontcourt, however, O’Neal is somewhat of an expert having won four championships as the starting center for the Lakers and Heat.
Now that he’s retired, O’Neal has taken a special interest in judging the modern-day big men and Rudy is one of his least favorite of all. Whether it’s jealousy over his career earnings (worth roughly $217 million) or simply an offense to his more “finesse” playstyle, Shaq has always been on the negative side when speaking on Gobert.
In the past, he has questioned his game multiple times and has openly doubted whether he’s worth the maximum contracts that teams seem so willing to offer. He took offense when Gobert claimed he could hold him to 12 points in a game and has gone out of his way to share some of his lowlights on social media.
The implication with Shaq’s latest post is that Rudy would be working a minimum-wage job right now had he not been blessed to stand at 7’1″ tall. As far as natural advantages go, Gobert has been dealt an undeniably favorable hand given his size, wingspan, and the era in which he’s playing. While centers of old might have given him a hard time, Rudy is the last of a dying breed of bigs in a league that has grown increasingly centered around perimeter shooting.
To his credit, he has more than enough credentials to prove his worth. Over 11 years in the league, Rudy has emerged as one of the best defenders in the modern NBA. He’s a 3x All-Star, 4x All-NBA player, and 4x Defensive Player of the Year with career averages of 12.7 points, 11.8 rebounds, and 2.1 blocks per game on 66% shooting.
After years of trying to help the Jazz reach the Finals, he was traded to the Timberwolves in 2022 where the results have been mostly mixed. In his first season, most experts agreed that the situation was a disaster and Gobert’s horrible fit with Towns and Edwards made him the subject of countless trade rumors.
This past season, however, something clicked for the Timberwolves and they managed to make a run to the Western Conference Finals. Gobert was a huge part of that and his defense on the interior set the tone for the entire team.
Now, in the 2024 Olympic Games, Gobert is once again in the spotlight after a narrow win over Brazil. Despite being the most decorated player on the roster he only played 18 minutes in the contest and finished with 7 points, 3 rebounds, and 2 blocks.
It wasn’t a great showing for Rudy and now the haters are coming out in full force to speak their remind. The only appropriate response for Gobert is to prove them wrong with good play on the court and by leading France to a top-three placement in the Olympic games this year. It might not do anything to silence O’Neal, but it would count as payback after all the trash he’s talked.
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