{"id":708548,"date":"2026-04-12T00:21:30","date_gmt":"2026-04-12T00:21:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/708548\/"},"modified":"2026-04-12T00:21:30","modified_gmt":"2026-04-12T00:21:30","slug":"shaquille-oneal-rips-rudy-goberts-250m-contract-i-dont-wanna-see-a-7-footer-airball-dunking","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/708548\/","title":{"rendered":"Shaquille O’Neal Rips Rudy Gobert’s $250M Contract: ‘I Don’t Wanna See a 7-Footer Airball Dunking’"},"content":{"rendered":"

Got story updates? Submit your updates here. \u203a<\/a><\/p>\n

\"AShaquille O’Neal’s ongoing feud with Timberwolves star Rudy Gobert reflects the clash between traditional and modern NBA big men.Minnesota City Today<\/p>\n

Shaquille O’Neal, the NBA legend, has once again taken aim at Minnesota Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert, criticizing the French player’s $250 million contract and lack of entertainment value on the court. O’Neal, who has previously admitted to ‘hating’ Gobert, said the four-time Defensive Player of the Year doesn’t do enough to justify his massive salary, stating he doesn’t want to see a ‘7-footer airball dunking’ or getting ‘pushed around’ and ‘dunked on’.<\/p>\n

Why it matters<\/p>\n

Shaq’s ongoing feud with Gobert highlights the divide between traditional big men who dominated the paint and modern defensive-minded centers. As one of the most dominant players in NBA history, Shaq has set a high bar for what he expects from elite big men, and he clearly doesn’t believe Gobert meets that standard despite the Frenchman’s impressive defensive accolades.<\/p>\n

The details<\/p>\n

During a recent interview, Shaquille O’Neal reiterated his criticism of Rudy Gobert, saying the Timberwolves star doesn’t do enough to entertain fans despite making over $250 million in his career. O’Neal, who won four NBA championships, said he ‘hates’ Gobert and doesn’t want to see a ‘7-footer airball dunking’ or getting ‘pushed around’ and ‘dunked on’. The Hall of Famer argued that if Gobert is going to make that much money, he should ‘put on a show for the people’.<\/p>\n

On April 10, Shaquille O’Neal fired another shot at Rudy Gobert.<\/p>\n

The players<\/p>\n

Shaquille O’Neal<\/a><\/p>\n

A Hall of Fame NBA player who won four championships and is considered one of the most dominant big men in league history.<\/p>\n

Rudy Gobert<\/p>\n

A seven-time NBA All-Defensive First Team player, four-time Defensive Player of the Year, and four-time All-NBA center for the Minnesota Timberwolves.<\/p>\n

Got photos? Submit your photos here. \u203a<\/a>
\n What they\u2019re saying<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you’re gonna make $250M, put on a show for the people. I don’t wanna see a 7-footer airball dunking. I don’t wanna see you pushed around. I don’t wanna see you dunked on. This kid, he’s making $250 million, and he is happy.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2014 Shaquille O’Neal, NBA Legend<\/p>\n

The takeaway<\/p>\n

Shaquille O’Neal’s ongoing criticism of Rudy Gobert highlights the generational divide in how NBA fans and experts evaluate the value of defensive-minded big men versus traditional paint-dominating centers. While Gobert’s defensive prowess is undeniable, Shaq believes he needs to provide more entertainment value to justify his massive $250 million contract.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Got story updates? Submit your updates here. \u203a Shaquille O’Neal’s ongoing feud with Timberwolves star Rudy Gobert reflects…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":708549,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3782],"tags":[7,307,152,3954,6,308],"class_list":{"0":"post-708548","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-minnesota-timberwolves","8":"tag-basketball","9":"tag-minnesota","10":"tag-minnesota-timberwolves","11":"tag-minnesotatimberwolves","12":"tag-nba","13":"tag-timberwolves"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nba\/116388882030012401","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/708548","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=708548"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/708548\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/708549"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=708548"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=708548"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=708548"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}