“You Were Riding on D Wade and Kobe Bryant’s Coattails”: Charles Barkley Rips Shaquille O’Neal on Live TV

Shaquille O’Neal is a 4 time NBA champion and had won those titles playing with all-time best players. O’Neal played for multiple teams and was a beast in his prime. Not only did he dominate in the regular season, but performed even better in the postseason.

Whereas O’Neal’s friend, Charles Barkley, never won a ring. Barkley played for the Suns, the Rockets, and the Sixers, but couldn’t manage to win a championship with any team. He was closest to a ring in 1993 playing against the Bulls in the Finals but came up short.

Did Kobe Bryant and D Wade carry Shaq?

Before game 1 of the Western Conference finals, Chuck and Shaq got into a heated argument. Shaq didn’t believe that playing against the defensive player of the year in the postseason would make any difference in Jimmy Butler‘s performance.

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To prove that, Shaq brought up his matchup with Dikembe Mutombo. In the 2001 Finals series, Shaq went up against Dikembe Mutombo, who was the defensive player of the year.

Chuck was furious after Shaq brought up this topic and said, “You were riding on Dwayne and Kobe’s coattails.” Shaq went on to mention his Finals MVP awards. But did he really win those rings being dependent on Kobe and Wade?

Shaq was a beast in the Finals

For starters, in the 2000 NBA Finals, Shaq absolutely dominated the Pacers. O’Neal averaged 38 points and 16 rebounds in that series. In the next 2 Finals series, Shaq averaged above 33 points and 12 rebounds. While he led the Lakers in all the 3 finals in scoring and rebounds, his performance in the 2006 Finals wasn’t as great.

Shaq averaged 13 points and 10 rebounds behind Dwayne Wade, who was putting up 34 points a game versus the Mavs. Wade might’ve carried the team in this finals series, but for the majority of Shaq’s finals history, he would always top the stat sheet.

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O’Neal also has 3 Finals MVPs to his name. This would shatter Chuck’s statement, as Shaq was a different element in the postseason. Do you think Charles Barkley is right in making the statement he made? Let us know in the comments below!