Los Angeles Lakers legend Shaquille O’Neal has been one of the sport’s most prolific media personalities since his retirement from his Hall of Fame playing career. His biggest role has been as a studio analyst on TNT’s Inside the NBA, which is moving to ESPN in 2025.
There, he has made many headlines over the years, specifically for his tough criticism on some of the game’s best centers. He was particularly hard on Dwight Howard during his prime, but largely because he felt that Howard had untapped potential. Howard was inducted into the Hall of Fame earlier this month and Shaq was there to support him.
But in today’s game, O’Neal says he’s struggled to find someone to talk to the way he did with Howard, taking a specific shot at Philadelphia 76ers big man Joel Embiid, via Sam Yip of HoopsHype:
“Nobody now because of the bigs that are supposed to be big. The big that I would be tough on is the Joker, but he’s the best center in the league. So I have to say nothing to him. And he has a championship, which means he knows what it takes. So I don’t have to say anything to him. Wemby, he’s still in that baby era. I try to be tough on Joel (Embiid), but apparently he can’t take it. So I’ll probably have to delete him from my program.”
In this statement, O’Neal mentions three big men: Embiid, Nikola Jokic and Victor Wembanyama. O’Neal used to be hard on Jokic, but his demeanor when it comes to criticism — as well as his championship equity after winning with the Denver Nuggets in 2023 — makes him a hard player to give tough love to.
Wembanyama is entering his third NBA season and is already widely seen as one of the ten best players in basketball. Another leap in Year 3 could give him an argument for one of the best in the world.
That leaves Embiid, who has been battling significant injuries his entire career and has never gotten past the second round of the playoffs, despite being an MVP winner. He has heard plenty of criticism from O’Neal and others, but has never seemed to respond to it with taking another leap as a player, in part due to the injuries that have held his career back.
Shaquille O’Neal launches new Shaq-a-licious gummy shape
Shaquille O’Neal has always been willing to put his name and brand on the things that he really believes in. One of his more recent ventures has been his Shaq-A-Licious XL Gummies, which he launched in 2024 in partnership with The Hershey Company. These gummies were ideated, developed and taste-tested by Shaq himself.
Now, O’Neal and Hershey have announced that Shaq-A-Licious XL Gummies in sneaker shapes are now available nationwide.
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