“Man Up Lil Boy”: Shaquille O’Neal Claps Back at Kanye West Hours After Being Ignored at Super Bowl

Shaquille O’Neal started his music career in 1993 with ‘Shaq Diesel.’ His debut album would receive platinum certification a year later. But despite his highly acclaimed music career and Hall of Fame basketball resume, Shaq often makes time for his peers and fans. While the gentle giant’s wish to meet 14-time Grammy winner Taylor Swift came true this weekend, one thing about Super Bowl Sunday bothered him. And, well, he and Taylor Swift would have that in common.

It’s no secret that there’s bad blood between Swift and famed rapper Kanye West. It’s a beef that started in 2009, and if recent rumors are anything to go by, there isn’t an end in sight. After Ye name-dropped Swift (once again) in his new song, “Carnival,” a day before the Super Bowl, he reportedly bought seats right in front of Swift’s suite at the Allegiant Stadium. When the pop star found out, she allegedly got Ye kicked out of the stadium. But before that happened, the rapper got into Shaq’s bad books.

After being ignored by Kanye West at Super Bowl LVIII, Big Diesel didn’t use kind words to respond. The disrespect didn’t sit well with the four-time NBA champion, given his previous clashes with West. He commented on a now-deleted Ye post, where the “Carnival” singer wrote, “DOV CHARNEY IS MY BROTHER AND ME AND MY WIFE’S BUSINESS PARTNER. WHEN JAMIE SALTER AND EVERYONE ELSE WOULDN’T TAKE MY CALLS, HE LET ME SLEEP AT HIS FACTORY. DOV CHARNEY, JONAH HILL, AND JON RAFMAN ARE 3 PEOPLE WHO INSPIRED MY APOLOGY.”

Making a direct reference to his gesture (or, in this case, the lack thereof) during the Super Bowl, Shaquille O’Neal commented, “who cares, stop b****in and snitchin. i kno u saw me at the Super Bowl. i was waiting for u to say something smart. man up. nobody wanna see u cryin. man up lil boy.” The apology Kanye West referred to was for his racist and anti-Semitic comments in the past, all of which received severe backlash. However, it’s safe to say Shaquille O’Neal wasn’t a fan of the apology. 

This is not the first time O’Neal has lashed out at the rapper. Known for his unabashed honesty, the Los Angeles Lakers legend doesn’t shy away from firing back when provoked. While that could be seen in his latest response to Ye, the Big Aristotle previously opted for a classy approach to retaliate to the rapper’s verbal jousting. 

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Shaquille O’Neal thinks Kanye West is a narcissist

The 2000 NBA MVP and Kanye West have been in another spat previously. Despite the feud, O’Neal appreciates West’s work. However, he wasn’t very happy about West’s “narcissistic” gesture. Back in 2022, the duo got entangled in each other’s dealings. It all began with Kyrie Irving’s controversial anti-Semitic movie promotion. Speaking on the matter, Shaquille O’Neal even called the player an “idiot.”

Kanye West was also involved in the rumors of the controversy and was even dropped by brands for it. Seizing the opportunity, Ye quickly commented how O’Neal’s comment was to bolster his business endeavors. Instead of just clapping back, O’Neal sharply stated in his response, “Have a great day, brother,” shutting Ye down using the rapper’s own words.

Later, Shaq shared, “I’m a little bit narcissistic.” About West, O’Neal said, “On a scale of 1 to 10, I’m probably a 2, [West] is an 8 or 9. A lot of people just can’t take accountability. He threw it all away being arrogant and cocky, so now he wants to throw everybody else’s business dealings under the bus?”

Well, Shaq has never denied his fandom for Kanye West’s music. But the two multimillion-dollar entertainers clearly have a history of clashing horns. Do you think Shaquille O’Neal and Kanye West have another beef brewing? What are your thoughts on this? Let us know in the comments section.

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