Shaquille O’Neal and Charles Barkley take great pride and pleasure in ribbing each other. Their shenanigans on Inside The NBA make the show must-watch TV and that is why ESPN struck a unique deal with TNT where they get to broadcast the show, while the latter produces it. While they never let an opportunity to embarrass the other pass by, once in a blue moon they showcase their deep affection for each other, as O’Neal did on Family Feud.
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On a holiday special episode of the iconic show, Shaq, his mother Lucille, his sons Myles and Shaqir, cousin Ken Bailey, and friend Anthony Hall battled actress and comedian Sherri Shepherd and her posse. The Hall of Famer messed up in the first round but showcased his clutch gene to help his team advance to the next.
O’Neal and Co. survived the next two and earned a chance to play in the Fast Money round, the show’s main event. In it, one contestant gets 20 seconds to guess the most common answer to five standard questions that have been asked to 200 people.
Once they are done, another contestant from their team steps up and gets 25 seconds to repeat the process. However, their answers cannot match their teammate’s responses. If their points total exceeds 200, the team wins the grand prize, in this case, was doubled from the usual $25,000.
O’Neal’s mother Lucille went first and put up an incredible score of 182. When the Hall of Famer was told his mother had already done all the hard work and all he needed to do was dunk the ball into the rim with nobody around him. Despite knowing he didn’t have to put in any effort, he gave terrific answers to the first four questions.
For the final question, Shaq was asked to name to word that rhymed with turkey. With a raised smile, he responded, “Charles Barkley.” Host Steve Harvey roared with laughter, while the audience applauded it.
Can @SHAQ slam it home in Celebrity Fast Money?? pic.twitter.com/gAaIyU71vS
— Family Feud (@FamilyFeud) December 5, 2024
His first answer netted 25 points, confirming the win for his team. He tacked on 48 points with his next three responses. Unsurprisingly, not one of the 200 people who were surveyed answered Charles Barkley as a word or phrase that rhymed with turkey.
It probably did not even cross their minds as several words sound exactly like turkey. However, O’Neal thought of it because he always looks for ways to either pull his friend’s leg or pay homage to him. In this case, he did the former.
