The 73rd NBA All-Star Game is underway as fans and celebrities pack the arena to witness some of the biggest stars in the league go head-to-head against one another. Multiple players will be making their first All-Star appearance while LeBron James will be making his 20th consecutive appearance in the All-Star game this year. Before tipoff, LBJ sat down with the Inside the NBA crew, giving Shaquille O’Neal the perfect moment to flex his resume on national television.
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LeBron James made history when he got selected for his 20th straight All-Star Game appearance, surpassing the great Kareem Abdul-Jabbar in yet another category. But before the game, James took a moment to sit down with the guys from the NBA on TNT crew to discuss his All-Star game MVPs.
While talking to the Inside the NBA guys, Ernie Johnson pointed out how LeBron James is tied with Shaquille O’Neal, Oscar Robertson, and Michael Jordan for having three All-Star Game MVPs under their belt. Ernie ended up asking James about potentially winning the All-Star Game MVP for the fourth time, joining Kobe Bryant and Bob Petit in that category. And a humble King did not seem that motivated to chase that accomplishment.
“You are tied with this guy (Shaquille O’Neal) and with MJ(Michael Jordan) and Oscar(Robertson)—three MVPs at the All-Star Game. Kobe(Bryant), Bob Petit have four. How much would you like to be an MVP for the fourth time?”
“Listen, I could stay at three. If I get four, cool. But at the end of the day, I’m in great company no matter where I’m at. So it doesn’t even matter.”
James asked Shaquille O’Neal about his three All-Star Game MVPs. This automatically gave The Big Aristotle something to rub in the faces of his co-hosts, Kenny ‘The Jet’ Smith and Charles Barkley when he said, “Anybody else at this table got three?”
As Charles Barkley tried to make his case for the one All-Star MVP he won in 1991, O’Neal did not hesitate in trolling him on national television, calling him a ‘bum.’ Whereas, all this while, Kenny Smith could only bring up winning three MVPs during his high school days.
But the Los Angeles Lakers legend wasn’t done gloating as he capped it off by saying, “Hey kids, I got the same MVPs as Bron Bron.”
It would be an interesting turn of events if LeBron James ends up winning his fourth NBA All-Star Game MVP, surpassing Shaquille O’Neal only hours after his statement. However, given how far behind the West is at the time of writing, and with not a single player showing any interest in even wanting to be in the same room as a basketball at the moment, that does seem beyond unlikely.
Shaquille O’Neal and LeBron James’s All-Star Game MVPs
Let’s dive into the years both Shaquille O’Neal and LeBron James were crowned with the MVP honors after their All-Star Game performances. Shaquille O’Neal’s first All-Star Game MVP came in 2000 but he was crowned the MVP as a joint winner for the third time in NBA history.
Shaq had to share his first All-Star Game MVP with San Antonio Spurs legend Tim Duncan as joint winners. His second MVP came in 2004 and the last one was another joint win alongside Kobe Bryant in 2009. Shaq became the first player in All-Star Game history to win two joint MVPs and also the first player to win the award with multiple teams.
As for LeBron James, the King won his first All-Star Game MVP back in 2006. He followed up on his ASG MVP award again in 2008. It seemed like LBJ took a decade-long snooze as his third MVP award came 10 years later in 2018. So, let’s see if LeBron James does end up making history tonight again by winning his fourth All-Star Game MVP award.
