Inside the NBA is some fan’s dream. After a heart-wrenching day of basketball, when you just want to unwind and watch some giant men do childish and silly things under the guise of talking basketball, it’s the perfect solution. Yesterday was no different. Ernie Johnson hosted a mock game show that was inspired by Shaquille O’Neal’s interactions with late great TV reporter Craig Sager.
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Sager and Shaq’s interviews were always hilarious, mainly because the two used their humor to bounce off each other and provide some amazing moments for the camera. One recurring bit was Shaq asking Sager to “spell it, tough guy” every time he used any word not so common in the vernacular.
The competition, hosted by Ernie, was pretty simple. Three words for the three contestants to spell, and they were provided with three separate boards to spell the words on. The first word was ‘podiatrist’ and Shaq was the only one to get it wrong.
This, of course, prompted Charles Barkley to take a shot at him, saying, “You’re the dumbest person on the show, Shaq!” Ernie then called out Shaq for looking into his cheat sheet, claiming he spelled the word wrong on purpose, causing Chuck and Kenny to burst into laughter, and Shaq vehemently denying all allegations of cheating.
After Shaq was clearly caught cheating for the second word ‘plethora’, Ernie burst out laughing, and Kenny simply said, “He’s got 18 degrees man! Come on Shaq, you can’t be cheating off the wrong paper bruh!”
Shaq’s spelling of ‘peripheral’ was also incorrect, and exactly what Ernie wrote on his cheat sheet. By this time, nobody on the panel could contain their laughter. Ernie, as the game show host, also notified the fans (and studio audience) that due to his unfair tactics, Shaq would be suspended for the next time they played ‘Spell it tough guy.’
Kenny making fun of Shaq’s degrees was an underhanded jab at the big man, mainly because he’s been very proud of his education since entering the league. While some of those degrees may just be symbolic, they are hugely important to Shaq and his late mother.
Since entering the league, he has collected 4 degrees- a BA in General Studies (Minor in Political Science) from his alma mater, LSU, an MBA from the University of Phoenix, a degree in Directing and Cinematography at the New York Film Academy’s Filmmaking Conservatory and an Ed.D. Degree in Human Resource Development from Barry University.
Funny enough, though he’s nowhere close to Kenny’s “18 degrees” jibe, Shaq is currently working on a 5th one, and is studying to become a sports psychologist and is doing it the right way, rejecting AI assistance in his studies.
