It’s almost NBA tournament time, and things are shaping up for various post-season awards, playoff spots and more. Just like he’s been for seemingly forever, LeBron James name comes up again in those ongoing GOAT talks.
On his own podcast this week, our man Shaq talked about the great players in the game today, versus the superstars of his era. It was interesting stuff, and got some equally interesting replies from fans and other players.
On “The Big Podcast,” O’Neal was talking with former Miami Heat guard Mario Chambers. Shaq made the big claim that players of the current era don’t “fear” LeBron James… not the way he feels other players thought about Shaq (of course!) and Kobe, back in the day.
In his own words, Shaq said, ‘I’ve heard players say, including myself, ”I feared Mike [Jordan].” I’ve heard players in [Chalmers’] generation say they feared Kobe. I’ve never really heard any player say they feared LeBron.”
The BIG Podcast with SHAQ
O’Neal went on to describe James as a ‘nice guy’ after Chalmers said that he once faced backlash in the past for having the same opinion as the former big man.
As for Chalmers, he won not one, but two rings with LeBron in his time with the Heat. “I got killed for that,” Chalmers said. “I didn’t think that players really feared LeBron, like they did Jordan.”
Chalmers didn’t mean any disrespect, but he followed up: “It’s not that players shouldn’t fear LeBron. I just think… at the end of the day, ‘Bron has been through so much that he wanted to be liked. So, it was kind of like… ”I’m going to do things now so that people like me, people respect me.” I mean [people are] always going to respect what [he] did but you’re actually going to like ‘Bron and want to be a fan of ‘Bron now. So I think that’s what that was…”
Reactions came quickly, and were definitely “mixed.” Many fans pointed out James’ playoff record in the Eastern Conference during his days on the Cleveland Cavaliers, as evidence that opponents didn’t want to match up against the four-time NBA champion and his teammates.
One posted on X (Twitter): “’Just ask any player in the eastern conference in the 2010’s that same question.” Another posted: “Raptors would like a word with Shaq,” making mention of James’ 12-2 playoff record against Toronto in his career.
And yes, there were those that agreed with Shaq and Chalmers. Someone wrote: “I would have a hard time taking anyone who tattooed “Chosen 1” on himself and dubs himself “King James” seriously enough to “fear” them. Sure, he’s a considerable force on the court, but his ridiculous self-aggrandizement would be in the back of my head, spurring me to never fear him.”
What do you think? We’ve had plenty of discussion on the whole “GOAT” thing here on the ShaqFu Radio blog. Feel free to post your reaction!