Shaquille O’Neal is known for being in the spotlight, but not always for good reasons. After retiring from basketball, he become more famous for his controversial statements. Recently, he commented on the NBA’s low ratings. While some might get upset by his words, there’s a part of it that is partially true.
During an episode of “The Big Podcast with Shaq,” the four-time NBA champion discussed how the league has shifted towards smaller, more versatile centers. He believes this has led to a decline in excitement and viewership.
Shaquille O’Neal remembered the time when centers like him were the biggest stars, controlling the game on both sides of the court. He called himself “dominant,” which might not sit well with everyone.
However, here’s what he said: “There’s no more dominant big man. It’s like stretch-fives. In my sport, everybody just does the same thing which makes it very boring.”
Shaquille O’Neal, standing at 7 feet 1 inch, is incredibly tall, but many players today are also tall. For example, LeBron James is 6 feet 9 inches. The key difference is that Shaq played as a center, while LeBron doesn’t.
Shaq did mention some exceptional players like Joel Embiid, Nikola Jokic, and Victor Wembanyama, who still stand out as dominant big men. If he hadn’t mentioned it, it might have caused more controversy.
Shaquille O’Neal criticizes Stephen Curry over NBA viewership drop
NBA viewership has taken a big hit this season, dropping 42% on opening night, according to ESPN. Obviously, no one has a good take on it, and on the ‘BIG’ podcast, Shaquille O’Neal shared his take on the decline. He blamed the league’s focus on three-point shooting for losing fans’ interest, seemingly targeting Stephen Curry.
Shaq believes NBA viewership is down because everyone wants to shoot threes
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He explained, “It’s down because we’re looking at the same thing. Everybody’s running the same plays… I think everybody’s looking at the same thing and Steph Curry and those guys messed it up. I don’t mind Golden State back in the day shooting threes but every team got a three-point shooter.”
