Shaquille O’Neal recently made the headlines with an unprecedented public criticism of Dwight Howard. However, the statement resulted in displeasure amongst the NBA fans as they voiced their opinions online. One particular viewer took matters to the extreme by accusing Shaq of doping during his playing days in the league.
Advertisement
The controversy sparked from Diesel’s latest remarks on The Big Podcast surrounding his realization to retire from the game. While elaborating his viewpoint, the New Jersey-born took a jab at Howard in a typical fashion, stating,
“When I had to pump fake the dunk…Then I look at the stats, I got 9 points. I’m like, ‘This ain’t fu****g Shaq, this is Dwight Howard'”.
The comments soon backfired on Shaq as an NBA follower, Twnkiehuntr, made a bold claim on X (formerly Twitter). While comparing both the iconic centers, the fan wrote,
“Why did Shaq get fat injured and fall off as soon as NBA steroid testing got serious in 2004 but Dwight was the best center in the league for half a decade…Which Superman came from DNA, which came from a syringe.”
This public accusation of doping caught the eyes of several supporters as they voiced their divided opinions on the matter. One such fan, David Elikwu FRSA, sided with the allegations, commenting, “Time to start calling the 90s the juice generation”.
Another viewer, Lisan al Gaib Maoist, promoted a similar narrative while highlighting, “The fall off from Lakers Shaq to Miami Shaq was genuinely insane you’re cooking here. He went from averaging 27/11 on 63% in 2004 Finals to averaging 13 as the third option to Antoine Walker in the 2006 Finals”.
Amidst the momentum disfavoring Shaq, certain followers united to support the 7ft 1″. One such supporter, Daliman13, stated, “2006 was his 13th year in the NBA and he was 33 years old. Name any Center not named Kareem that performed better than Shaq in his 13th+/33rd + year…Also: Shaq 2006 20/9.2…Howard 2019 (age 33) 12.8/9.2”.
Another follower, Perspectives, carried forward the discussion on a similar note, commenting, “Shaq was also second in mvp in 2005…Him falling off a cliff was moreso because he played lesser minutes due to obviously coming out of shape (valid criticism throughout his career) and wasn’t the focal point of his teams offense anymore”.
The truth behind the doping allegations remains unclear to this day despite the concerns from the viewers. Yet, their comments summarized the generic struggles of the NBA centers while shedding light on their sharp downfall over time.
Simultaneously, the instance marked a rare occasion for Shaq as his shenanigans haunted him miserably.
Shaquille O’Neal once admitted to taking performance-enhancing products
Diesel’s potential usage of steroids has always remained a key area of interest around the league. Amidst the question marks, Shaq once addressed the concerns during a discussion on 790 The Zone in Atlanta. At that time, the 2000 MVP admitted to using performance-enhancing cereals (PECs) to sustain his career.
As per Yahoo, the 15x All-Star declared, “I’ve told the world before, the only thing I had was Frosted Flakes: Super Enhancement Cereal…For all the little kids, the Performance Enhancement Cereal is you take the Frosted Flakes, and you take the Froot Loops, and you mix them together, and then you get some of them sliced bananas and you put them on that thing”.
This showcased how the accusations failed to bother the big man past a certain point in his career. This further proved his self-belief as a competitor while adding volume to his achievements. Hence, the light-hearted nature of his character contributed actively to his development while fueling his growth.
