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“Charles Barkley, you played on a team that had a Big 4!”: Shaquille O’Neal defended LeBron James by calling out Chuck for teaming with Hakeem Olajuwon and Scottie Pippen

Samir Mehdi
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“Charles Barkley, you played on a team that had a Big 4!”: Shaquille O’Neal defended LeBron James by calling out Chuck for teaming with Hakeem Olajuwon and Scottie Pippen

Shaquille O’Neal called out Charles Barkley for being hypocritical against LeBron James by bringing up his Houston Rockets superteam. 

Charles Barkley and Shaquille O’Neal have butting heads well before they took to the NBAonTNT set. Their first public feud took place on NBA hardwood when the Los Angeles Lakers faced off against the Houston Rockets, which quickly delved into an all-out brawl between the two squads, headed by Shaq and Chuck. 

Fast-forward to present day and they continue to quarrel with one another but across a desk instead of the court. There are several things that they hold over each other’s heads during their bickering.

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Shaquille O’Neal continually brings up the fact that Chuck has never won a ring and so cannot comment on other players and what they should do to put themselves on a championship path. 

Charles Barkley keeps it simpler and goes on tangents about how the 4x champ isn’t exactly the smartest person in the room. 

Even when it came to the greatest player of this generation, LeBron James, the two couldn’t agree with one another. 

Shaquille O’Neal and Charles Barkley on LeBron James. 

The 2016-17 season saw LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers try to fend off a Golden State Warriors team that now featured Kevin Durant. During the season, it was clear ‘The King’ wanted more help to try to compete with GSW. Charles Barkley and Shaquille O’Neal had differing views on this move by LeBron. 

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‘Sir Charles’ argued that James should’ve most definitely not publicly stated that he wanted more cavalry while O’Neal believed that it was within his rights to be able to request for more help, especially after mending his relationship with Dan Gilbert. 

The Lakers legend then called out Chuck for being hypocritical by claiming he had a superteam of his own with the Houston Rockets. Chuck of course, refuted this by saying him, Hakeem, Scottie, and Clyde were all out of their prime. 

In summary, LeBron James had enough help but lost the 2017 NBA Finals in 5 games.

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About the author

Samir Mehdi

Samir Mehdi

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Samir Mehdi is a senior strategist for the NBA division at The Sportsrush. Ever since he was 13 years old, he’s been obsessed with the game of basketball. From watching Kobe Bryant’s highlights on YouTube to now, analyzing and breaking down every single game on League Pass, Samir’s passion for the game is unwavering. He's a complete basketball junkie who not only breaks down current games but also keenly watches ones from the 60s’ and 70s’ while also reading comprehensive books on the history of the league. Samir’s life revolves around basketball and he hopes that shows in his work. Aside from work, he loves to spend time in the gym and with his friends at social gatherings.

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