Dissatisfied Shaquille O’Neal’s Major Lakers Concern Triggers Heated Debate on TNT

It’s not a regular NBA season unless the TNT studio is on the verge of a fight. The Inside Guys are no-holds-barred, dishing their tough love as usual. Shaquille O’Neal majorly triggered his panelists when he went after his old franchise. Though the Lakers clinched a win in their home opener, Shaq demands more consistency. At the same time, his co-hosts think he’s grossly underestimating LeBron’s squad.

This is the latest in Shaq’s criticism of his former team. If his analysis is to be taken with a grain of salt, the Lakers will need to fix their graph.

Shaquille O’Neal shares a hot take about the Lakers

The Los Angeles Lakers took to their home court with a 100-95 win over the Phoenix Suns. While the mood in LA is celebratory, the air in the TNT studio is fiery. Notably, the Lakers were also involved in the season opener against the defending champs in Denver. However, that match resulted in a 119-107 loss for the Purple and Gold.

Somehow, even following their first win against the stacked Suns, Shaquille O’Neal was not impressed. The 4x NBA Champion said that the Lakers need to do more than just have “dramatic comeback wins” if they want to retain their title as the best in the Western Conference.

That triggered the entire panel at Inside the NBA. Charles Barkley and Kenny Smith wanted to know which other team is “better” than the Lakers in the West. That led to O’Neal doubling down on his comments about the Lakers.

“I’m concerned they keep having these dramatic comeback wins. I would like to see them especially if they’re going to be recognized as a powerhouse in the West, I’d like them to jump out early,” said the Big Aristotle.

O’Neal’s opinions stem from the Lakers’ redemptive game on Thursday night. After trailing behind the Suns for three quarters, LeBron James overtook Kevin Durant in a game-changing fourth quarter. It was also retribution for Anthony Davis, who after being scoreless against Denver in the second half, made four for four free throws in the final quarter.

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According to O’Neal, the inconsistency is going to affect LeBron. He brought up the much-discussed “minutes restriction” on him to stave off the pressure on the oldest player of the team. “We want to take care of business early,” O’Neal advised the Lakers in case James doesn’t play for the rest of the game. Despite the harsh criticism, his loyalties are leaning one way.

Shaq wants his team to win

Don’t mistake his criticism for anything else. O’Neal is rooting for the Lakers. He repeatedly brought up that he wanted them to beat the Suns. When his co-hosts mentioned the odds are against the Purple and Gold squad against powerhouses like Kyrie Irving, Shaq wasn’t having none of that. “I’m Bron and this is AD. I don’t care who coming in that day. We got to put them away. We supposed to put them away.”

This comes after Shaq and Chuck have been repeatedly critical of Anthony Davis. At the same game, they explained why but they remarked that he is inconsistent.

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But while most of the Inside Crew believes the Lakers are maintaining a stronghold despite visible issues, Shaq wants them to get down to business. Do you agree with the Big Aristotle? Where will the Lakers finish in this year’s Western Conference?