Shaquille O’Neal throws WILD stray towards Paul George as LeBron – Steph – KD era nears the end
Shaquille O'Neal took stray shots at Paul George in an emotional Instagram story, reflecting on the "end of an era" in basketball.
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Shaquille O'Neal takes stray shot at Paul George on Instagram stories
The basketball community as a whole is slowly realizing that the era they grew up watching is coming to a halt. Superstars of our time, like LeBron James, Stephen Curry, and Kevin Durant, are all past their primes as they enter their late 30s.
The legend of “Big Diesel,” Shaquille O’Neal himself, shared a similar sentiment. O’Neal shared a post on his Instagram stories, that highlighted a list of great players from the earlier part of this era, such as Chris Paul and Damian Lillard, who are also nearing their departures from the game.
The post emphasized the ages of these aging superstars, accompanied by a quote: “The era we grew up watching is coming to an end,” along with a heartbreak emoji.
While there are a lot of painful emotions tied to that post, it also carries undeniable truth. The fact is, the average age of retirement in the NBA is 33 years old, and all the players we grew up watching are now past 34 or 35. For instance, Chris Paul is 39 years old, while LeBron James just turned 40 and is sharing the court with his literal son. There’s no telling when our favorite players may drop the ball, take their exit, and leave us all behind.
The post also took stray shots at Paul George that Shaquille O’neal might have overlooked. Stating every other player’s age on the list, besides George, who was termed as still “a*s”. A highly disrespectful remark that a player of O’neal’s stature will not say out loud, despite his continued criticism of PG on his show, Inside The NBA.
Shaquille O’Neal rips Paul George for his comments post playoffs loss
It’s no secret that Shaq isn’t a fan of today’s players and their seemingly dull performances. Anyone who’s a regular viewer of Inside the NBA knows that O’Neal can be petty at times, but he still manages to deliver honest assessments that are both objective and practical.
One such moment occurred last year when Shaq commented on Paul George, then with the Clippers, following a critical loss to the Mavericks. The game, pivotal for the Clippers to advance to the conference finals, ended in disappointment. In a post-game interview, George stated, “If you fail, you fail. Live with the results.” O’Neal seized the moment to critique George’s performance and hold him accountable.
No, I ain’t going with that. If you fail, you can’t fail… If you play hard and play with a lot of effort, that’s not a failure. You play hard, you go out there and get 15 points when you are 2-15, nah, I ain’t living with that.
Shaq’s reaction to Paul George’s comments
Since then, Paul George has been traded to the Philadelphia 76ers, where he has been struggling with injuries. As a result, he has been on and off the court for most of this season, which has impeded his ability to find rhythm and build chemistry with his new teammates.
Currently, George is averaging 15.8 points, 5.5 rebounds, 4.8 assists, and 2 steals per game as a 76er. However, he has been struggling with shooting efficiency both from the field and beyond the three-point line. Despite these challenges, George has shown flashes of brilliance that keep Philadelphia in playoff contention—provided he can stay healthy.
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Anubhav Bajpeyee
(172 Articles Published)