During a recent episode of NBA on TNT, Shaquille O’Neal and Candice Parker revealed who they thought were their rivals. After Candice had discussed her list of rivals, Shaq was asked about his list. Rattling off some names, Shaquille O’Neal mentioned Alonzo Morning, David Robinson, Hakeem Olajuwon, Patrick Ewing, and Yao Ming. But to everyone’s surprise, the list didn’t quite go according to O’Neal’s plan.
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Shaq’s first rival was none other than his fellow TNT co-host, Charles Barkley. Barkley and O’Neal even went at each other during a game, throwing punches at each other as they wrestled each other to the ground. While recalling the incident, Shaq expressed his regrets, but not for reasons that many may think.
Talking about it, Shaq said,
” I messed up this punch..cause what happened is that…I wanted him to come on the inside so that I can hit him with this[Shaq’s right hand]…but he went on the outside.”
Another rival that made Shaq’s TNT listen was “free throws”. Shaq had historically struggled with free throws, shooting just 52.7% oof them. But O’Neal was quick to clap back at the producer pick, telling his co-hosts,
“free throws aren’t anything when you got four championships and three retired jerseys in three different arenas.”
As the segment came to a close, Shaq raised a pertinent point. Talking about his free throw slander, Shaq pointed to the fact that there had to be some area of the game he had to sub-par, calling it a tool that God used to keep him humble.
Charles and Shaquille O’Neal still go at each other
Shaquille O’Neal and Charles Barkley have always found ways to get at each other. The chemistry between the duo is based on their honest banter, oftentimes even causing temporary feuds between the two retired legends. On a few occasions, the feud between the duo even ended up becoming physical, like the time Charles punched Shaq and ran off.
Yes, you heard that right. Back in 2017, Barkley hit Shaq after Diesel harshly pushed his co-host Kenny The Jet Smith, during a segment of the show. Barkley, who didn’t seem too amused by Shaq’s actions, decided to retaliate against the Lakers Legend. Barkley gave Shaq a nice shot across the chest, running away instantly, as Shaq chased after his fleeing colleague.
But Shaq would make sure to get his revenge on Barkley, and it came during a post-game segment back in 2023. While the TNT team was covering Draymond’s beef with Rudy Gobert, Shaq decided it was time for revenge. Sneaking behind Barkley, Shaq proceeded to put his co-host in a similar headlock.
Shaq, who seemed to be hell-bent on getting payback, seemed to have choked his co-host a little too hard, leaving Charles breathless and shocked. Even though the incident took place many years after their first altercation, Shaq was sure not to miss this occasion.
Chuck and Shaq share several such incidents on and off the TV. Keeping aside everything, both of them share a cordial bond and have been best friends, especially after coming together as colleagues. However, the two keep going at each other whenever it comes to game analysis and career discussions. Even though they don’t see eye to eye on several occasions, the two are one of the funniest and fan-favorite duos on TV.
