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[Saba Sports News] Shaquille O’Neal believes Rudy Gobert is fortunate they were never teammates.
Shaq, known for his harsh criticism of players—especially big men he views as underperforming—has targeted Gobert for a while. During the Summer Olympics, O’Neal took aim at the French center, and recently, he escalated the criticism by calling Gobert “one of the worst players of all time.” This prompted a response from the Minnesota Timberwolves star earlier this month.
In episode 32 of “The Big Podcast,” Shaq addressed the situation while talking with Udonis Haslem, his former Miami Heat teammate. O’Neal asked, “If Rudy Gobert was on my team, what would I have done to him?”
Haslem replied that Shaq likely “would have put his hands on Gobert” in the locker room.
O’Neal clarified his tough-love approach, saying, “It may sound personal, but it’s motivation. That’s all it is. It was just motivation.”
Despite being a four-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year, Gobert has been a target of criticism from fellow players who believe he isn’t living up to expectations.