Father Time comes for everyone, and Shaquille O’Neal is no exception. Speaking on ‘the BIG Podcast,’ the Diesel explained his experience with aging in the NBA and detailed the moment he knew that his time at the top was at an end.
“[I knew I was done] when I had to pump fake the dunk,” said O’Neal. “And then I look at the stats, I had 9 points. I’m like, ‘This ain’t fu****g Shaq, this is Dwight Howard.”
Retirement can be a touchy subject for many former players but O’Neal can still remember the moment he knew the end was near.
Shaq, a 4x champion and 15x All-Star, was known for his signature, rim-rattling dunks. The NBA had to change the rules for him coming up and he became famous for breaking the backboards of several goals. At 7-1 and roughly 325 pounds, Shaq was arguably the most powerful big man in NBA history and he was an immovable force under the rim during his prime.
Sadly, like all NBA superstars, O’Neal began to decline late into his career and by the time he won his final championship with the Heat, the signs were already beginning to show. By the time Shaq was traded to the Phoenix Suns in the 2007-2008 season, he was a shell of his former self and finished the season with averages of just 13.6 points, 9.1 rebounds, and 1.4 blocks per game on 59% shooting.
Health was another factor in Shaq’s downfall, as the Lakers star would play at least 55 games or more just once in his final five seasons before finally retiring for good in 2011.
Of course, Dwight Howard went on a similar decline toward the end of his career but Shaq may not like to admit that his numbers once rivaled his own during his peak days with the Orlando Magic. For whatever reason, O’Neal just keeps taking shots at Howard, and this latest jab is just the latest in a long line of slanderous comments.
Shaq And Dwight Have Legendary Beef
It’s not quite known what went wrong between Shaquille O’Neal and Dwight Howard. The earliest anyone can remember a rivalry dates back to the 2008 dunk contest when Dwight “stole” Shaq’s signature nickname (Superman) as part of an act for the show.
Nate Robinson ended up winning the contest that year, and Shaq never let Dwight live it down. In Shaq’s eyes, Dwight had shown him the ultimate disrespect by donning his old nickname without earning it.
Over the years, O’Neal has taken to making some harsh comments about Howard’s career and his status as an All-Time center, even going so far as to suggest he wasn’t a Hall of Famer during a debate a few years ago.
Dwight Howard himself has come out to speak against his rivalry with Shaq and has publicly called on O’Neal to bury the hatchet once and for all. So far, O’Neal has shown no indication of changing his ways and it seems like he may never stop taking shots at the man.
Now that both players are retired and out of the game, there is hope that they might reconcile and work out their differences but only time will tell if they will ever see eye-to-eye. Clearly, Shaq still has no issues insulting his game…
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