Shaquille O’Neal Highlights Categories Where Bol Bol Outshines Victor Wembanyama as a Starter in the NBA

Shaquille O’Neal has made it abundantly clear that Bol Bol is his favorite 7’3 giant in the league. He might be the only person comparing him with Victor Wembanyama because the latter’s numbers have been exceptional. However, after Bol made his first start for the Phoenix Suns recently, Shaq pulled out a new comparison chart.

The big fella took to Instagram to share a post from Basketball Forever that compared the two centers’ numbers as starters in the 2024-25 season.

Bol’s first game as a starter was a memorable one. He dropped 18 points, 14 rebounds, two assists and steals, and four blocks. He shot 7 of 16 from the field and 3 of 10 from the distance to make it a complete performance. Since the graphic was made immediately after that, it only shows these numbers as his average.

Wemby, on the other hand, averages 24.4 points, and that’s the only lead he has over Bol. He averages 11 rebounds, 3.9 blocks, and 1.2 steals, trailing behind Bol in all three categories. While the graphic somehow made Bol better than Wemby in Shaq’s eyes, the comparison is just unfair.

Not only is Wemby a regular starter, but he is also the face of his franchise. He has played 46 games this season so far and has been in the starting lineup on every outing. So, the comparison is unnecessary. If we treat Shaq’s comparison with merit, Bol’s numbers take a significant hit following his second start for the Suns.

He is now averaging 16.5 points, nine rebounds, one assist, 1.5 steals, and three blocks per game after starting in back-to-back games. But this won’t stop Shaq from drawing these comparisons again because this wasn’t his first attempt at it.

Shaquille O’Neal loves to pit Bol Bol against Victor Wembanyama

While doing the TNT Halftime Report for the game between the Suns and the Grizzlies, Shaq was over the moon for the fact that Bol was nearing a double-double at halftime. He celebrated that by eating “the nastiest bowl of cereal” and making some outrageous claims.

After rewatching Bol’s long-range shot, he said, “The first 7 foot 5 guy to shoot 3s. Don’t be talking about that other guy. Bol is the first.” In January, he shared a clip of Bol’s highlights on his Instagram story. The original post was captioned, “We Want More Bol Bol.”

It must be heartwarming and encouraging for Bol to see one of the greatest players of all time rooting for him at every opportunity. While it does help build his credibility, Shaq must understand that there’s a stark difference between the two players. And it’s going to take some time for Bol to be on Wemby’s level if ever.