NBA legend Shaquille O’Neal has never been afraid to let basketball fans know how he feels when it comes to certain teams and players. During a recent interview with Complex, the Hall of Fame big man was asked who he thought was the worst NBA player of all time.
Shaq didn’t mince words about his answer: Minnesota Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert.
“If you sign a contract for 250 [million]show me 250,” he said. “There’s a reason why I walk funny, why I can’t turn my neck and why I can’t do it is because I played for my 120. [million]. You have guys like him that f— the system is over and they’re making all this money and they can’t f— play. I don’t respect guys like that.”
O’Neal is also sure to poke fun at Brooklyn Nets forward Ben Simmons as he called Simmons “another bad guy.” Gobert is currently entering the fourth season of a five-year, $205 million contract he originally signed with the Utah Jazz, while Ben Simmons is wrapping up a $177 million contract this season.
During an appearance on “Sports Seriously” by USA Today on Friday, O’Neal doubled down on his comments, and wants his original take to serve as motivation for Gobert and Simmons.
“It’s also a personal motivation,” O’Neal said. “So now Rudy and Ben: Show me what you got. See how, people don’t understand what I’m saying now on TV, it’s the same things I told my players as a leader. Young man… you ‘ you pay 20 million dollars. The outsiders, we know, are like, ‘Oh, I don’t, I tell you the truth.’ , Rudy and Ben Shut Me Up.”
Meanwhile, Gobert responded to O’Neal’s comments on Thursday.
“It’s sad to see someone who has achieved as much as you have @SHAQ both in sport and business, still be triggered by another man’s finances and achievements. I get the entertainment part but unlike other people, you don’t need that stuff to stay relevant,” Gobert wrote more social media.
It’s an interesting take from O’Neal considering Gobert has done quite a bit during his NBA career. Gobert is a four-time Defensive Player of the Year, three-time All-Star and seven-time member of the NBA All-Defensive First Team during his time with the Utah Jazz and Timberwolves.
Gobert is coming off a season in which he averaged 14.0 points and 12.9 rebounds with the Timberwolves. The French native’s 12.9 rebounds per contest were the second-highest average in the entire league, behind only Sacramento Kings star Domantas Sabonis (13.7).
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