Shaquille O’Neal Explains Why Tim Duncan Doesn’t Get Talked About Enough, Calls Spurs Legend GOAT Power Forward

Shaquille O’Neal has faced countless legends in his career, but few earned his respect like Tim Duncan. On a recent episode of The Big Podcast, Shaq opened up about the toughest era he played in, the late 1990s and early 2000s. And Duncan was one of the biggest problems he ever had to deal with.

“Tim was a problem,” O’Neal acknowledged. “I could never break him or Hakeem Olajuwon. My move was the elbow to the face move, and I’d give it to them, and they never responded. They never said anything, so I could never break them.”

Duncan hardly lost composure while playing and was a silent operator. And, despite his undeniable greatness, the San Antonio Spurs legend rarely gets the respect he deserves. While people don’t usually try to tarnish his legacy, Duncan often goes under the radar.

Shaq’s praise for Duncan on his podcast sparked a discussion of why Duncan’s legacy is often undermined. O’Neal said it was because Duncan “was quiet and wasn’t flashy”. Tim quietly did his job and stayed away from the limelight. He wasn’t very outspoken either, or maybe he simply was disinterested in everything else.

And the Lakers legend believes his nonchalant attitude contributed a lot to the five-time NBA Champion’s absence from the public discussions.

“Remember when he got his MVP, he had his jeans [shorts] and f****ng Jesus sandals,” Shaq recalled the instance from 2002 as an example of Duncan’s attitude. He simply didn’t care about anything else and was all about his game.

The big fella then referred to a comment previously made by his best friend, Charles Barkley, to call Duncan the GOAT power forward. “Charles always says that he was the greatest power forward ever, and I agree,” he said.

At the end of the day, the media and internet discussions dictate a player’s standing on all-time lists. And Shaq understands that very well. “Some people, they talk about with a lot of props, some people they don’t,” he added.

So, even if Duncan doesn’t get featured on sports TV or NBA subreddits and other social media forums, his legacy ranks very high in the eyes of other athletes, especially his former teammates and his opponents.

Danny Green called Duncan his best leader

Duncan’s greatness wasn’t just on the stat sheet. It was his leadership. Danny Green, who played with Duncan in San Antonio, recently reflected on how steady and impactful Duncan was behind the scenes. According to Green, Duncan’s influence as a leader was second to none.

In an episode of Inside the Green Room with Danny Green, he put Duncan’s leadership qualities above another one of his teammates, LeBron James. “Timmy,” said Green when asked who was the better leader between Duncan and LBJ.

“You do not [hear] the vocal as much because they know him to be quiet, but he is not as quiet as you think. In the locker room, in those timeouts, he is letting you know what’s going on. But he’s encouraging,” Green explained.

While he enjoyed his time with LeBron as well, Green believes that Duncan was also like a coach when talking to players, which set him apart.