Shaquille O’Neal, often hailed for his kindness to others, has little tolerance when the conversation revolves around his NBA legacy. Widely regarded as the most dominant man to ever play the game of basketball, Shaq likes to brag about his ‘G14 classification’. But the big fella gives credit to others where it’s due.
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He shared a reel from Instagram creator ‘iballright’ [Daniel H] on his stories that featured a comparison between him and Denver Nuggets superstar Nikola Jokic on different categories. The popular creator is known for making videos by pouring water into bowls.
In the video, Daniel had two bowls, each for the two players. The amount of water poured into the bowls suggested the magnitude of the player’s excellence on the mentioned category.
Daniel suggested in the video that Nikola Jokic has a better ‘scoring bag’ and ‘basketball IQ’ than Shaq. Since Shaq shared it on his IG story without any further comment, it’s safe to assume he agrees with the creator.
Daniel started by comparing the two in ‘scoring’ and gave Shaq the edge over the reigning MVP. Other categories where the big man won were defense, athleticism, dominance, and quite hilariously, ‘taking things personal’.
On the other hand, the Serbian took the cake in passing and free-throws. However, both failed miserably in ‘dieting’.
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Shaq had a very limited range of shots even in his prime. This was one of the things that he was criticized for. On the other hand, Jokic can shoot from almost anywhere on the floor, including the three-point range.
The other category where Shaq lost was basketball IQ. As dominant as he was in his time, the Lakers legend’s dominance came from his physicality alone. Jokic can read the game, disrupt plays, and make adjustments according to the situation.
Regardless of the rankings, these two are on the Mt. Rushmore of the greatest big men in the league’s history.
Comparing Shaquille O’Neal and Nikola Jokic’s careers
Comparisons of their career accolades have to be adjusted because Jokic is still in his 9th year whereas Shaq had a 19-year run in the NBA. But the Joker has won a lot in his run in the league so far.
He is a three-time MVP, six-time All-Star, a Finals MVP, and an NBA Champion. Shaq, on the other hand, has one MVP title, four NBA titles, three FMVPs, and 15 All-Star appearances. The 52-year-old was a superior all-around player.
He has an edge over Jokic with his two scoring titles and three NBA All-Defensive Second Team selections. As per Stat Muse, in his nine seasons, Jokic has averaged 20.9 points, 10.7 rebounds and 6.9 assists in 675 regular-season games. He shoots 55.7% from the field and 37% from the three-point line. Shaq averaged 27.7 points, 12.4 rebounds and 2.8 assists in 608 games in the first nine regular seasons.
The Lakers legend was shooting 57.7% from the field and was a two-time NBA Champion, two-time Finals MVP, 2000 league MVP, and an eight-time All-Star after nine years. So, even though Jokic is a better scorer than Shaq, he has a lot of catching up to do before he takes the lead over the Diesel.
