LA Lakers legend Shaquille O’Neal explained why he “hates” this four-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year
O’Neal, one of the NBA’s all-time greats, has a history of beef with players in the league throughout his time as an analyst. His most high-profile fallouts were with three-time Defensive Player of the Year Dwight Howard and three-time NBA champion JaVale McGee.
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The four-time champion with the Lakers and Miami Heat, O’Neal has high standards for the big men of the modern NBA and has never shied away from his emotive opinions of the players he dislikes. Nothing has changed there.
Shaquille O’Neal explains why he ‘hates’ Rudy Gobert
O’Neal has a history with Minnesota Timberwolves big man Rudy Gobert.
He was initially critical of the Frenchman when he signed a $205 million contract extension with the Utah Jazz in 2020, saying, “This should be an inspiration to all the little kids out there. If you average 11 points in the NBA, you can get $200 million.”
Gobert has shrugged off O’Neal’s criticisms over the last half-decade, but recently on The Big Podcast, the NBA Hall of Famer took it a step further.
He said, “I f–g hate Rudy Gobert”
“He’s making $250 [million], and he doesn’t deserve it, dog. As the president of the big man alliance, if you’re making big money, play like a f–g big man. Throw some balls, knock people out.”
He’s not making $250 million, and never has. He signed a three-year $109.5 million deal with the Timberwolves in 2024.
He continued, “Don’t let little white dudes from Denver dunk on you, and talk s–-t to you, and then you’ve got to grab them by the neck at the last second. Come on, bro.”
O’Neal is referring to when the Denver Nuggets’ Christian Braun emphatically dunked on Gobert, then walked towards him flexing. That incited a reaction out of Gobert, who grabbed Braun in an attempt to throw him away.
With four Defensive Player of the Year awards to his name, as well as three NBA All-Star appearances and four All-NBA selections, Gobert is likely to be named to the Hall of Fame when he retires.
O’Neal mocked the concept of him receiving that honour, grabbing a picture of his NBA analyst colleague Charles Barkley in a dress (don’t ask), and saying, “If Rudy Gobert gets into the Hall of Fame, I’ll wear this dress to the m——g ceremony.”
Rudy Gobert’s Hall of Fame case
For his resume, Gobert isn’t making a lot of money compared to modern NBA standards. The Phoenix Suns pay Devin Booker $72.5 million per year. Meanwhile, Damian Lillard will be paid $72 million in 2026 by the Milwaukee Bucks, who waived Lillard this summer.
He may be the only case of an NBA player showing seemingly zero interest on the offensive side of the ball, but his trophy cabinet speaks to Gobert’s defensive prowess.
Four Defensive Player of the Year awards and seven selections to the All-Defensive team make him the greatest interior defender of the last decade in the league. That’s enough to make the Hall of Fame.
His ability to step out on the perimeter and guard wing players has come into question. Luka Doncic famously picked on him in the 2024 playoffs, as the then-Dallas Mavericks star hit a game-winner over him in isolation.
But any player in the league would be hard-pressed to say they’d like to meet him on their way to the rim. Except Christian Braun apparently.