What started as a funny segment on TNT’s “Inside the NBA” has turned into a full-on Twitter war.
Thursday’s episode of the show featured a “Shaqtin A Fool” package that was a parody of “Doctor Strange” dedicated to JaVale McGee’s lowlights. The Golden State Warriors center didn’t take too kindly to analyst Shaquille O’Neal’s commentary — the Hall of Fame center has spent years picking on McGee — and he took his complaints to Twitter, where Shaq went in on McGee, saying he’d “smack the s— out of” him.
Unsurprisingly, McGee’s Warriors teammates weren’t fans of O’Neal’s antics, and forward Kevin Durant came to McGee’s defense.
“JaVale works extremely hard, has come in here and done extremely well as a player,” Durant told reporters Friday, per the San Jose Mercury News’ Anthony Slater. “He only wants to be respected like anybody else. I understand that Shaq works for a company that wants him to do that type of stuff, make fun of players.
“It’s cool, it’s funny, but when you keep doing it time and time and time again and a guy actually disagrees with you and you threaten him — I didn’t know cops could threaten civilians like that. It’s definitely childish. But that’s what they want from these stars and these retired players, is to feud with the guy who’s playing now and make arguments and disagreements. If I was JaVale, I’d feel the same way. It’s childish.”
Durant went on to say O’Neal would feel the same way if he were in McGee’s place and reminded the 44-year-old that he had plenty of lowlights in his career, too.
As you can imagine, Shaq didn’t let KD get away with having the last word.
Yeah, we’d say this feud isn’t going to end any time soon.
Thumbnail photo via Nelson Chenault/USA TODAY Sports Images
