The feud between analysts Stephen A. Smith and Jason Whitlock has been going on for a while now. Ever since their war of words started, many top sportscasters have given their honest take on the whole ordeal. Recently, NBA legend Shaquille O’Neal talked about the feud during an episode of the Big Podcast with Shaq.

Following this, Jason Whitlock has now given his reaction to the 4x NBA champion’s comments via his YouTube channel. After listening to what the Big Aristotle had to say, Whitlock said that it was a master’s class on how to be a likable public figure. He talked about Shaq’s personality and noted that it is hard for anybody around him to not feed off of his joyful energy.

The commentator claimed that the Hall of Famer did not take any direct shots at Stephen A. Smith but still cleverly called him out. Whitlock explained, “Shaq very cleverly took no shots at Stephen A Smith but basically said, ‘I have too much respect for my mother and my parents to make a fool of myself the way that Stephen A Smith did.'”

He claimed that the Los Angeles Lakers legend insinuated that he has too much respect for his parents to embarrass himself the way SAS did. The former ESPN employee added, “Stephen A. Smith embarrassed himself. His parents, I think are now passed. I know his mom has passed or whatever. But he made a fool of himself and Shaq very politely called it out.” 

The 2000 MVP has always thanked his mother and stepfather for guiding him and explained that he wouldn’t have acted the way Smith did to spare his mother the stress. But Shaq also did share some approval for Stephen A. Smith’s actions. “I’m glad he did it,” said the 7-footer.

WATCH THIS STORY – Patrick Mahomes’ Cryptic Message to Bills Player After Playoffs Win Gets Shout Outs From Wife Brittany & Brother Jackson

Well, regardless of the fine print, it’s clear that Jason Whitlock believes he has Big Diesel on his side. But this months-long beef still appears far from its culmination. Many might have forgotten how the whole ordeal even began.

Stephen A. Smith and Jason Whitlock’s beef

The beef between Stephen A. Smith and Jason Whitlock started a few months back when Whitlock alleged that the ESPN veteran had written false stories in his autobiography. It caught Smith’s eye. And even though SAS did not mention Whitlock by name in his response, fans were sure that he was speaking about him.

SAS called this individual a “fat, no-good b*st**d who I despise to the core,” adding, “It ain’t hard to figure out who the hell I’m talking about.” Smith even went on to call this unnamed person a “seed of the devil“.

READ MORE – Shaquille O’Neal’s AI Remix Fever Continues With Iconic Jason Derulo Platinum Blockbuster

This was followed by a response from Whitlock, even though SAS did not mention his name. The former offensive lineman noted that he was just criticizing analysts just like they do with athletes and questioned Smith on his inability to take criticism. Jason Whitlock added that he doesn’t have a problem with the popular analyst calling him “overweight”. Ever since this, the issue has only escalated in the following months.