“Can We Finally End This as Adults”: Shaquille O’Neal Hilariously Rejects Dwight Howard’s Peace Offering

On his X account, Shaquille O’Neal once again openly displayed his witty yet hilariously petty side. It was Dwight Howard who elicited such a response from Shaq. The former NBA star recently made a peace offering, calling for the termination of “hostilities” between the two of them.

However, Shaq was having none of it. His short and brutal reply summed up the nature of the feud between two of the NBA’s greatest big men perfectly. All this happened when Howard called for a truce on X recently and wanted to initiate a meaningful conversation with the big fella.

He wrote, “I[Howard] never had a problem with you[Shaq] so can we finally end this as adults? [100 emoji]” To which Shaq responded, “nope lol”.

nope lol

— SHAQ (@SHAQ) January 20, 2024

This hilarious exchange proves that Shaq has always been the instigator in this public ‘feud’. And it’s pretty clear that the four-time NBA Champion doesn’t want to declare a ceasefire on his attacks on Howard just yet.

So what brought about this exchange? Howard actually noticed Shaquille O Neal’s comments on him where Shaq explained why he was so tough on the former Magic Center. During his recent appearance on Trae Young’s podcast “From the Point”, Shaq claimed, “I love Dwight Howard”. Calling him his “little brother”, the Diesel said that he acknowledged Howard’s athleticism and wished that he could “jump that high”.

The big man further claimed that he was hard on the 2020 NBA champion because he wanted Howard to surpass him. O’Neal debunked the notion that there is hate between them. Referring to his resume as a multiple-time NBA champion, Shaq claimed that he was just asking Howard to get where he is. Howard co-signed on these thoughts through his X post and therefore, wanted to bury the hatchet following these comments.

https://t.co/CuCoi94rI2

— Dwight Howard (@DwightHoward) January 19, 2024

However, the playful Shaq would not let the opportunity slide to be playful. It is just typical Shaq pulling the leg of someone he is familiar with. However, owing to a personal incident, Shaq had once committed himself to remain respectful towards the 3x Defensive Player of the Year.

Shaquille O’Neal holds Dwight Howard in high regard

Shaq’s mother Lucille O’Neal’s yelling once made him apologize to D-12. In 2022, during a Thanksgiving dinner, the strict parent chided her son for mocking the 8x NBA All-Star’s Taiwanese League stint, an action that hurt Howard’s sentiments. On The Big Podcast, O’Neal apologized to Howard in the presence of co-hosts Nischelle Turner and Spice Adams.

“I got scolded by my mama yesterday for messing with Dwight. So, Mr. Dwight Howard, I owe you an apology. I will never hurt your feelings again,” expressed a remorseful Shaq.

Fast forward to half a year and the support from the big fella was evident when Dwight Howard was hunting for an NBA contract in the offseason. He extended his best wishes to the effective Center. In his IG story, Shaq shared a post about the Grizzlies needing to fill the void at the center position due to Steven Adams’ injury and suggested that Howard could be a great choice. Only time will tell how things turn out between the two.