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Rudy Gobert responds to Shaquille O'Neal after new criticism

  • Anthony Gharib, ESPNSeptember 5, 2024, 4:45 p.m. ET

The ongoing feud between Rudy Gobert and Shaquille O'Neal added another chapter on Thursday.

The four-time NBA champion has made multiple references to the Minnesota Timberwolves center over the years, and his most recent comment came while appearing on Complex's “GOAT Talk” podcast alongside his son, Myles O'Neal.

Myles asked his dad who the worst NBA player of all time was. Shaq answered Gobert, to which Myles asked, “What about Ben Simmons?”, who Shaq then called “a bum too.”

Myles chuckled and apologized to Simmons and Gobert before Shaq made a statement.

“When you sign a contract for [$250 million]show me you're 250,” Shaq said. “There's a reason why I walk funny and why I can't turn my neck and why I can't because I played for my [$120 million]. So there are guys like him who ruin the system, who make so much money and still can't play. I don't respect guys like that.”

The comments caught Gobert's attention, who responded to X.

O'Neal has often criticized Gobert since the four-time Defensive Player of the Award winner signed a five-year, $205 million contract in December 2020. O'Neal said on a March episode of his podcast that if he were 42, he would be making “Rudy Gobert's money.”

“Twelve points and eight rebounds? I could do that shit right now,” O'Neal said.

He also dismissed Gobert's defensive influence on the same episode.

Gobert told ESPN's Tim MacMahon in April 2024 that he had come to terms with being the most ridiculed player in the NBA. The center has been criticized by various members of the league, including Draymond Green and Andre Iguodala.

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