“Shaqtin’ A Fool That”: Shaquille O’Neal Vehemently Defends Russell Westbrook as Terrible Shot Goes Viral

It’s not ‘Lefkoe a Fool.’ So Adam Lefkoe should leave it to the expert. At halftime, Shaquille O’Neal didn’t show much faith in Russell Westbrook. But when he had a little gaffe on the court, Shaq defended his favorite Clipper. Doesn’t look like Westbrook is going to win a notch on Shaqtin a Fool any time soon if he keeps it up.

After Westbrook dropped 12 points in the Clippers’ 102-100 win against Denver, Adam Lefkoe pushed one of his slips as a “Shaqtin a Fool candidate.” The namesake said nope. “He slipped,” he repeated every time. “Stay off my boy.” Westbrook was somewhere between energetic and chaotic today when he attempted a drive on Christian Braun in the first quarter. In some absurd demonstration of weird physics, he made the shot from a foot away over the top of the backboard and missed.

This could be the result of Russ playing with an injured left hand but it’s rarer than Shaq breaking backboards. It’s gone viral for obvious reasons that when Russ redeemed himself, it almost went unnoticed. But that moment on the TNT highlight had Shaq gloating at Lefkoe, “Shaqtin a Fool that!” Who knew the roasting segment on Inside the NBA could be used that way?

Russ has won Shaqtin a Fool MVP thrice in the past (2017, 2021, 2022) but not this week. The winner this week instead was his teammate James Harden. Shaq instead had some concerns for Russ.

Shaq’s got a close eye on Russ

With Kawhi Leonard also injured, the scoring burden was on Paul George. Westbrook is usually the best guy to fall back on but he had his struggles today, Meanwhile James Harden was posting double-digit stats for the first time in weeks. Though they kept their fourth-seeded spot in the west, Shaq is concerned about this team before the playoffs.

READ MORE: “He’s Just a Nice Guy”: Shaquille O’Neal Demands More Aggression From the ‘Big Man Club’ Member

“Westbrook and Harden will have to play superb basketball for them to advance. I don’t wanna hear about, who’s gonna get the ball, get yourself the ball… do what you do,“ Shaq strongly recommends for the veterans on the team. But he’s also hopeful because of Russ. Enough to bet Lefkoe $20 that the Clippers would beat the defending champs. He’s still waiting for that money.

The giant is the only one with a sliver of positivity. He’s not convincing fans that Westbrook slipped. Fans are teasing Shaq for his passionate defense as much as Russ’ slip. Do you think that viral miss is worthy of Shaqtin’ A Fool?

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