In 2018, during a TNT‘s Inside the NBA segment, Shaquille O’Neal and Charles Barkley debated whether a superstar’s amicable relationship with the head coach is a prerequisite for winning. Discussing DeMar DeRozan’s troubled relationship with his former Raptors head coach Dwayne Casey, the two engaged in a heated argument. In the end, the conversation became personal with the two taking shots at each other’s careers.
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As per Barkley, to win, an athlete must have a close relationship with his head coach. However, Shaq instantly disagreed and replied, “That’s not true!” The Round Mound of Rebound disapproved of the answer and argued that just because Shaq says so, it doesn’t alter the reality.
However, O’Neal snapped back,
“Me and Pat Riley never saw eye to eye. And what happened in Miami [2006 NBA champions]? So it’s not true what you talking about, doesn’t matter.”
The 1993 MVP then realized that the conversation had now gotten a tad personal and before he could say something, Shaq continued, “You don’t know what you talkin’ about when it comes to championships.” It was a jibe at the rebounding legend as he never won a championship in his decorated career. The 1987 NBA rebounding leader in his customary style pointed out that the Center had help from one of the greatest Shooting Guards ever.
He argued, ”Dwyane Wade carried you to that champion[2006]! No matter how much you scream, laugh that does not make you right.” O’Neal claimed that Barkley was “babied” because of which he couldn’t win a ring.
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Shaq reminded the 1991 All-Star MVP about his winning resume. Thumping his chest, he proclaimed, “I got 3 finals MVP Chuck! Google me, Chuck. You got that. Google me. I got 3 Finals MVP, how many you got?”
Finally, it was host Ernie “EJ” Johnson who tried to diffuse the situation. From discussing Dwane Casey’s stressful relationship with DeMar DeRozan to their personal accolades and personal jibe, the theme of the debate shifted pretty quickly.
This is a typical Barkley-Shaq heated exchange that usually ends with them arguing about their career accomplishments. The 4x NBA champion doesn’t shy away from reminding Barkley about his lack of an NBA title.
Shaquille O’Neal can’t resist bringing up his rings
In one such random instance during Inside the NBA’s “What’s My Number?” quiz, Shaq was telling his reasons for not wearing #33 when he came to the NBA. Since his role model, Knicks legend Patrick Ewing wore #33 throughout his career, he wore it in Cole High School and LSU.
However, when he was drafted by the Magic and then played with the Lakers, he donned #32. The picture slideshow displayed all the numbers he wore throughout his career. At the end of career, he had become a journeyman, so the list kept going.
Chuck knew he could jibe about the tail-end of his career. When the slide shifted to his #36 number in Celtics, Chuckster hilariously quipped, “That’s how many points he had in a month.” This induced laughter among the crew. When the slide shifted to his Cavaliers #33, Barkley sprinkled salt in O’Neal’s wounds. Much to the crew’s delight, he jibed, “That’s how many points he had in two months.”
They have been trading such blows for the past 12 years. This displays that they are so close to each other that they don’t need to hold back. There is a lot of passion behind their arguments but the two are now used to each other. They can’t help but prank and take shots at each other whenever they talk.
