Shaquille O’Neal, the Los Angeles Lakers legend, has always been hailed as the most towering figure on the basketball court. For years, he was referred to as a ‘seven-foot-tall’ behemoth, but a picture resurfaced on the internet a while ago with Milwaukee Bucks’ superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo that challenged this notion. In an interview on a podcast, O’Neal revealed that he is actually 6’11”, and that he only played along when with the 7’1” belief!

Now a new development indicates further how Shaq cannot be compared with Antetokounmpo. The revelation about Shaq’s height has shocked many basketball fans who had always believed that O’Neal was a ‘seven-foot-tall’ giant. However, it also highlights the sheer physical dominance that O’Neal possesses that underscored his playing days and led to the subsistence of the 7’1″ epithet for so long.

Why can’t Shaquille O’Neal be compared with Giannis Antetokounmpo?

Richard Jefferson, a former NBA player and current ESPN analyst, spoke about the futility of such a comparison on The Old Man and the Three podcast. Jefferson noted that Shaquille O’Neal was one of the most physically dominant players in NBA history and emphasized how his sheer strength and power changed the game.

He said, “There’s no other player that I can think of in recent history that has that type of strength and power. He changed the f*****g equipment, backboards were getting broken.” Jefferson highlighted that O’Neal was so dominant that the physical equipment had to be adjusted to accommodate him.

According to Jefferson, this kind of physical dominance is not comparable to what Giannis Antetokounmpo brings to the table since Shaq adds to it with his surprising agility. He said after stating that he doesn’t like the comparison, “Giannis is the same type of dominance when you see percentage around the rim because there was a size and a f*****g mass to Shaq that was different. He was like Embiid, but he moved like Giannis.”

Jefferson went on to say that if Shaq were playing today, teams would need to change their rosters to account for his unique skills and physical attributes. Interestingly, the comparison between the two giants shows how the game has changed over the years.

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The comparison between Shaq and the Greek freak is fascinating 

Because it demonstrates how play-making on the hardwood has evolved, the comparison between Shaquille O’Neal and Giannis Antetokounmpo is really interesting. The sport has definitely changed since O’Neal’s era, despite the fact that he was unquestionably a dominant force in his day. Instead of pure strength and size, the emphasis is now on speed, agility and adaptability.

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Yet, as Jefferson notes, players with special abilities and physical characteristics, such as O’Neal and Antetokounmpo, can both alter the course of a game in a different way. Despite the absolute undeniability of a player like Shaq on the court, Giannis Antetokounmpo too, being both large and athletic, is a special force to be reckoned with in the NBA today.