This just-ended season of the WNBA saw unprecedented growth and popularity for the ladies’ game. Newly-minted stars like Caitlin Clark, Angel Reese and others brought huge crowds to the games… Some big TV contracts and money as well.
Speaking of Reese, she’s got her own podcast (who doesn’t, these days?) and our man Shaq was a recent guest, talking about his ideas for making the game even more fan-friendly and more interesting for players and viewers alike. By the way, if you’re looking for it, Reese’s podcast is called “Unapologetically Angel.” Find it wherever you get your podcasts.
On the show, O’Neal came right out and said it. Make the game even more interesting by boosting the scoring. How? Lower the rims. Yes, yes, we know. Shaq has caught a lot of flack for his suggestion. Some fans think moving the rims down a bit would be “demeaning” to women’s basketball players.
Yes, he’s taking some shade for bringing up the subject in the past. That didn’t stop him from doing it again. Why? Simple, Shaq says: “A pretty girl dunking on the rim? I’m watching that all day.” The comment brought generated a laugh-out-loud moment from show host Reese.
The BIG Podcast with SHAQ
The conversation turned to one of the WNBA’s most recognizable and important stars, Caitlin Clark. Again, Shaq: “It’s about seeing stuff you ain’t supposed to see… Why you think people love Caitlin Clark? Besides her skills?” Reese’s comeback? “She can shoot threes from logo.”
Shaq said that made his point: “We never seen that before. That’s my point. She’s doing stuff we’ve never seen before. [I’ve] never seen nobody [shoot logo threes] on a consistent basis. There’s a lot of girls in the WNBA that have done it in spurts, but that game I’m watching y’all in the Final Four, I’m like ‘Damn.’ And I was a hater, cause you know I’m down with you, like, ‘She’s not gonna hit that shot.’ And then, bam, she hits the shot.”
Shaq took a few minutes to compare Clark with NBA superstar Steph Curry. It’s not always about physical size (something Shaq knows a bit about…). ‘We’ve never seen that before. That’s my point. Steph Curry, a little kid like Steph Curry, you know why I love Steph Curry? Because I’ve never seen that before. I’ve never seen that before. I’ve seen it a little bit, but I’ve never seen a guy consistently come down,’ O’Neal said.
‘If you saw Steph on the street, he ain’t got the Lebron muscles. He looks like a perfect, normal office guy. He’s doing stuff that people never seen before. She’s doing stuff we’ve never seen before. Never seen nobody do that on a consistent basis.’
‘There’s a lot of girls that have done it in spurts. And I was a hater because you know I’m down with you, and I was like she not gonna hit that shot and bam. Like damn, she’s not gonna hit that shot, bam.’
‘Like if I say 10 times, “you’re not gonna hit the shot” and you hit the shot, that means you’re the truth.’
So…lower rims for the ladies? How much? Shaq said, “…just lower it like this,” and then held up his hand, with fingers just an inch or so apart. So not much. Would it make a big difference in the game? Hard to say. Also, Shaq isn’t suggesting that the WNBA should lower its rims for Caitlin Clark specifically, or that Clark needs to be dunking.
Seems it’s more about the “cool factor” of seeing the ladies of the WNBA being able to dunk, something he believes would boost (even more) interest and engagement with the league.