Last night… Live from Miami! Shaq on the sidelines calling the game for TNT. Did you see it? Here at the offices of ShaqFu Radio, we were tuning in for the latest round in the NBA’s In-Season Tournament game featuring the Heat and Milwaukee Bucks.
There was our man Shaq, in suit and headphones, broadcasting the game with regular sideliners Kevin Harlan and Reggie Miller. It was great to hear the big man chatting it up as part of the sideline crew.
The former Lakers – and Miami Heat – superstar left the desk in Atlanta behind, joining the broadcast crew in Miami. For the record, back in the ATL, Candace Parker joined Ernie Johnson, Kenny Smith and Charles Barkley on the set for the broadcast.
Meanwhile, back in Miami, Shaq had a couple of funny / interesting / engaging moments during the broadcast. Would you have expected anything less? Both came from the big man’s memories of his playing-days times.
At one point during the broadcast, Shaq claimed he was the “first big guy to bring the ball up the court.” That drew quite the reaction from Miller. Shaq said, “I was the first big guy to bring the ball up the court with style and charisma. Not Wemby, Not Bol Bol, but me.” There’s been a lot of talk about the San Antonio Spurs’ new big man, 7-foot-4 rookie Victor Wembanyama.
Later in the game, O’Neal had another “moment” when he was asked by Miller to describe the Heat’s in-house culture. Shaq came right back with his answer, saying, “I’m gonna define it in three words: discipline, motivation, and never giving up.”
Yeah, we know. That’s six words, not three. The fans took exactly zero seconds to react to the comments. In usual Shaq and Inside the NBA style, a lot of replies were laugh-out-loud funny. Check out some of the highlights in the screenshots below.
At least one fan blamed it on the guys O’Neal hangs out with: “Been hanging around Chuck too long lmao” said one. Plenty of others took to social media for comments and crazy images.
One fan made a funny reference to a popular TV commercial for an insurance company, saying “He bundled it… It’s fine I’ve seen the commercial.” Pretty sure that commercial features a certain Kansas City football team, but no worries.
No matter, it was great to see and hear Shaq on the sidelines for the game last night. Hopefully he makes the trip out of Atlanta to call and be a part of more games in the future. No matter how many words it takes!