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LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – OCTOBER 09: Shaquille O’Neal attends the WBC heavyweight title fight between Tyson Fury and Deontay Wilder at T-Mobile Arena on October 09, 2021 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images)
via Getty
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – OCTOBER 09: Shaquille O’Neal attends the WBC heavyweight title fight between Tyson Fury and Deontay Wilder at T-Mobile Arena on October 09, 2021 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images)
Ever since the 2008 Slam Dunk contest, NBA legends Shaquille O’Neal and Dwight Howard have been locking horns on and off the court. The feud took some ugly turns over the years. After retiring, Shaq has had some harsh words for Howard as a basketball analyst. Howard is currently playing in the T1 League in Taiwan. After the eight-time all-star’s impressive performances in Taiwan, O’Neal made some comments about the T1 League and Howard in his Big Podcast. So Howard slammed O’Neal with his response.
Many fans were also not impressed with Shaq’s remarks as well. The four-time champion then apologized for his comments. Now, the Los Angeles Lakers legend has again stirred the pot.
Fans called out Shaquille O’Neal for his comments on Dwight Howard
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A video clip of Dwight Howard struggling against former Sacramento Kings center Sim Bhullar in Taiwan recently went viral. The 6’10” relatively lean Howard struggled against a 7’5″ heavily built Bhullar. As per reports from Lakers Daily, when a fan commented Howard is not a Hall of Famer, Shaquille O’Neal agreed and replied, “u right”. But the fans are not happy with the comments and have slammed O’Neal. Some fans argued Shaq struggled a lot against average centers at the end of his career as well. Here are some reactions:
https://twitter.com/CyroAsseo/status/1616512212960481293?s=20&t=h8IcR867PkqoYHS-wCaScA
@SHAQ let this go man. I hate that this beef is still going on for so long. Please, let this go. Life is too short to keep these grudges
— be_rad93 (@be_rad93) January 20, 2023
It's crazy to me that this man's feelings are still hurt because Dwight Howard wore a superman shirt in a dunk contest 15 years ago
— AScott (@OrlMagicMan) January 20, 2023
In Shaqs last year, he had a game where he scored 8 points and fouled out in 19 minutes going up against Reggie Evans.
Your HOF resume isn’t based on how bad you are at the end. Otherwise like KG shouldn’t make it because he avg 3ppg his last year for the Wolves.
— SportsFan (@nbasportsfan30y) January 20, 2023
no one questioned shaqs hof when he stunk it up for like 4-5 years at the end of his career in the nba, but dwight goes overseas and he wants to de lmao
— Matt (@MattTalksBall) January 20, 2023
Lmaoooo it’s called the NBA hall of fame not the international hall of fame 🤣🤣🤣 Let’s show some Shaq stats in his dying years
— Miami Heat Fan (@Miamirunsthis) January 20, 2023
Dude is an absolute hater lol. Dwight is 100% a hall of famer. What he does or doesn't do on the last leg of his career does not take away from his greatness
— Shazayum (@Shazayum) January 20, 2023
Well Him being a Hall of Fame is questionable after that Celtics-Cavs Stint 😭
— 3000 (@Ben74450057) January 20, 2023
Most fans were in support of Howard again after Shaq’s latest remarks. Many argued a player’s final years of basketball are usually not the reason why they are considered for a Hall of Fame spot.
READ MORE – Aged 50, Shaquille O?Neal Makes Scary 6-Word Admission on His Own Death
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Despite his utter domination ever since he stepped into the league, O’Neal struggled a lot during his final years in the league as well. It is usually the case for most NBA legends and superstars.
Shaq’s beef with Dwight
Shaquille O’Neal has had some major feuds with multiple NBA stars after his retirement. His beef with Dwight Howard is one of the long-standing ones which stretches back to Shaq’s final years in the league. After winning four titles, Shaq joined the Phoenix Suns at the tail end of his career. This was when Howard was in his prime. Things between the two first blew up when Howard used a Superman cape during the 2008 Slam Dunk contest and won. Shaq was not happy Howard used his nickname.
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Howard had a similar start to life in the NBA as O’Neal. Both were dominant centers, and both were drafted #1 by the Orlando Magic. While Shaq was a superstar ever since his first game, Howard required some years before becoming a superstar in the league. However, the two centers are often compared with each other.
