Shaquille O’Neal and Charles Barkley’s rivalry dates back to their playing days, but off the court, they’ve built a friendship filled with relentless jabs. From late-night TNT studio roasts to public events, their back-and-forth is always on point. Recently, though, Barkley found a clever way to drag Shaq’s name into the fire yet again, setting the stage for another hilarious exchange.

It all started during TNT’s celebrity golf tournament, The Match, where Barkley and Blake Griffin squared off in a lighthearted game. As Griffin and his team struggled, he turned to Chuck for advice, cheekily saying, “Any advice? You’ve been three down a lot. What would you say we should do?” Not one to back down, Barkley responded by tossing Shaq under the bus.

“Just for the record, I’ve never been swept a lot like Shaq been swept, like, seven times,” Barkley fired back. “I’ve never been down three in a series, Nate. Shaq’s the one. He’s been swept seven times.” Ernie Johnson, hosting the event, tried to steer the roast back on track, saying, “You don’t have to bring Shaq into this.” But Chuck was ready. “He considers himself a great player. How the hell do you get swept seven times if you’re a great player?” Griffin couldn’t help but laugh, adding, “That was quite aggressive.”

Interestingly, Shaq has owned up to his struggles in the past. In an interview two years ago, he admitted, “I failed eight times, and I am probably the biggest superstar that has the most sweeps in NBA history; I got swept six times.” However, as per Shaq, those failures pushed him harder.

“After tearing up the house and working in the lab, I said, ‘I’m going to get them next year.’ So, in the year 1999–2000, it was the tipping point, and that was probably my best year,” Shaq reflected.

But that’s not the end. Just a week ago, Chuck boldly claimed he was superior to Shaq in terms of “basketball IQ”

Chuck mocks Shaq for “basketball IQ”

Recently, on the latest episode of The Steam Room podcast, Ernie Johnson and Charles Barkley answered an unusual fan question. “If all circumstances were the same, who would be the better basketball player between you and Shaq if you were both six feet tall?”

Without hesitation, Barkley declared himself the superior player. “No question, I’m a better player,” he said, doubling down on his point. While he acknowledged Shaq’s legendary dominance, Barkley didn’t hold back when comparing their skill sets. “Shaq is one of the most physically imposing and dominating players of all time. But for strictly basketball IQ, we’re not even on the same level… Just as a pure basketball player, I’m a much better basketball player.” Chuck also reminded everyone just how massive Shaq is, adding, “You know Shaq’s the biggest human being in the world.”

But Charles Barkley didn’t stop there. He confidently claimed that if they were both six feet tall, it wouldn’t even be a competition. “I would kill him on the court,” Barkley said with a laugh. Still, Chuck made sure to balance his criticism with praise for Shaq’s physicality. “He’s one of the most physically dominant players of all time,” Barkley admitted. “His size and strength made him great, but if you strip that away, it’s a whole different story.”