Shaquille O’Neal’s The Big Podcast with Shaq featured Ice Cube in the most recent episode. Both Cube and Shaq had some interesting takes on things beyond basketball. The two talked about music, their history with one another, as well as the current situation of the Lakers team. While on the show, Ice Cube went on to reveal what LA needs to be a championship-caliber team once again.
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Ice Cube has been an avid supporter of the Los Angeles Lakers. Often seen sitting courtside at the Purple & Gold’s home games over the years, the 54-year-old rapper gave his two cents on what it would take for the Lakers to return to their glory days.
“We needed a bigman, I mean, a true bigman. That’s what everybody call it the ‘Mickey Mouse’ championship. But all those teams was going for that Mickey Mouse championship. They was going for that banner. So, you can’t dismiss it but at the end of the day, it was Dwight Howard in there, it was Javale McGee, and we had another big guy. But AD (Anthony Davis) can only do so much, asking him to play center, to me is just—I think you got to free him up a little bit.”
Ice Cube mentioned the Los Angeles Lakers struggled because of the absence of a big man. Given that Anthony Davis is more than capable of filling that role, it also ends up placing a lot of responsibility on his shoulders.
Cube brought up the 2020 Lakers championship. He stated that the Lakers had players like Dwight Howard and JaVale McGee on the roster, who were pure centers and not power forwards. Having a pure center on the roster helps any team on the defensive end of the floor. And both Howard and McGee were excellent rim protectors.
He even dove into the Conference Finals against the Nuggets during the bubble. The Lakers had big men on their roster who could slow down Nikola Jokić and the Denver Nuggets back then. This led the rapper to claim if the Lakers had a true big man on their roster, the outcome of their series against the Nuggets these past two postseasons would’ve been quite different.
Ice Cube’s interaction with Shaquille O’Neal and other Laker legends
A Los Angeles native, Ice Cube has plenty of fond memories of watching the Lakers growing up. An avid fan and supporter of the Purple & Gold, Cube has had numerous interactions with Lakers legends over the years as well.
One such interaction he had was with Magic Johnson during his playing days. As per Basketball Network, Ice Cube once snuck into a game that was a blowout and made his way to the entrance of the tunnel.
“We snuck down by the floor, right by the tunnel. I remember Magic was coming out the tunnel, and I was right there. “I was like, ‘Hey Magic!’ He was like, ‘Hey, young dude,’ and he slapped my hand and kept going. I just remember he had the softest hands I’d ever felt from a man.”
After gaining fame and popularity in the world of music, Ice Cube’s love for the Lakers organization presented him with opportunities he previously didn’t have, like courtside seats and interaction with the players on the roster. During his appearance on The Big Podcast, Cube and Shaquille O’Neal even talked about the Sports Illustrated cover where both Cube and O’Neal took on each other’s persona.
Another Lakers legend that Cube was fascinated with was Kobe Bryant. He once shared his favorite Kobe Bryant moment while making an appearance on First Take. However, after getting familiar with Bryant and his game, Ice Cube got to spend time with the five-time NBA champion and was also distraught when he passed away.
