There was a time when the NBA on TNT pregame/halftime/postgame crew was seen as the best and most entertaining in the business. Shaquille O'Neal, Charles Barkley, Kenny Smith, and Ernie Johnson were the reason that many decided not to just wait until halftime for a bathroom break.
It seems to have fallen off in recent years, and now their set is on ABC/ESPN. Shaquille O’Neal has been known to hold grudges in both his playing and post-playing career.One of those players Shaq has never liked (or at least hasn’t for a while) is Rudy Gobert. Despite Gobert doing an incredible job on Nikola Jokic throughout the Minnesota Timberwolves/Denver Nuggets series, Shaq isn’t giving the 4-time Defensive Player of the Year credit, as prior to Game 4, he said,
“Rudy himself said I’m making it tough for him, I’m making it hard for him, getting in his face every shot, and that’s all you can do. But when you’re a guy like Joker, you just missing shots. I’m not going to sit up here and say that Rudy Gobert is shutting him down, I’m never going to say that."
At this point, his hatred for Gobert has become petty and childish.
Shaq’s pettiness has become laughable
There is a reason that many people now believe that Amazon Prime and NBC’s set shows have become the better listens due to going more in depth with what is happening on the court compared to what is provided by Shaq and Charles, who sometimes make it obvious they aren't the least bit knowledgeable about half the teams.
The Timberwolves are now up 3-1 in their opening round series, one that most predicted the Nuggets to advance in. The offense has been fine, but it’s really their work on the defensive end that has put them just one win away from the conference semifinals.
In the first four games, 3-time MVP Jokic has shot just 34-87 (39.1 percent) from the field. He’s at 23-68 (33.8 percent) since Game 2, when Gobert found out that he finished just fourth in Defensive Player of the Year voting. Joker has also averaged four turnovers per contest and has made just 2 of 16 shot attempts in the fourth quarter in the last three games.
Is it all Gobert? Of course not. But he certainly has played a substantial role in Jokic’s struggles, and even a casual watcher of the game would be able to see that. His suffocating defense on the Joker has been a major cause as to why Jokic is putting together his worst stretch of basketball we have seen in quite some time.
Shaq is the same guy who said he would wear a dress to the Basketball Hall of Fame ceremony if Rudy Gobert is elected. At this point, with some years still left in his career, it’s fairly evident that Gobert will be getting that call to be enshrined in Springfield after his playing days are over.
Gobert has always been one of the more scrutinized players in the league. People on social media love to share the times that he gets toasted on defense, but ignore the highlights on that end, which are 20 times more frequent. Now, though, seemingly everyone (except Shaq) is realizing Gobert's immense defensive impact.
I doubt Gobert cares what Shaq has to say at this point. The Diesel wouldn’t give him credit if he blocked every single one of Jokic’s shots. It’s disappointing that an all-time great can’t objectively give his thoughts without letting biases get in the way.
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