Shaquille O’Neal has long been outspoken with his criticism of the modern generation of NBA big men.
Long gone are the days of down-low, post bruisers like Shaq.
During the most recent episode of The Big Podcast, the all-time great big man shared his thoughts on the modern-day post player.
“I wish I was playing with these buttercups right now… I promise you I wish I was playing. It’ll be a slaughterhouse out there,” he said.
The NBA world took to Twitter to react to this claim from Shaq.
“Shaq would be averaging 35ppg and his teams would still be losing by 15 lol,” one fan wrote.
“2022 rules of engagement says that Trae Young would openly hunt Shaq on switches and stretched floors would likely have him out there like Gobert. I love Shaq, but retirement home NBA needs to knock it off with all that noise. Especially centers,” another added.
“He ain’t lying. Shaq would be the best center in the NBA. Abusing Jokic, Embiid, KAT. Allum,” another said.
“Shaq would literally average 50 and 20 and it would be light mode. League sucks,” another wrote.
Shaq is widely considered one of the most dominant basketball players of all time — and there’s no question he would physically dominate the vast majority of the current NBA. But with today’s game heavily emphasizing three-point shooting and floor spacing, the superstar center may have difficulty fitting into modern schemes.
How do you think Shaq would perform in the modern NBA?
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