📂 Categoría: Basketball,Los Angeles Lakers,NBA,San Antonio Spurs | 📅 Fecha: 1778488655
🔍 En este artículo:
Inside the NBA descended into chaos as Charles Barkley jumped in to defend Shaquille O’Neal.
It came after Kenny Smith claimed the legendary center didn’t play ‘winning basketball’ until three years into his storied career.
Ahead of Game 4 between the San Antonio Spurs and Minnesota Timberwolves on Sunday night, the crew got into a heated discussion about Spurs phenom Victor Wembanyama’s potential.
Smith suggested ‘The Alien’, who was ejected during the game over a nasty elbow, is on the verge with San Antonio in his third year, and couldn’t resist a cheeky comparison with Shaq.
Kenny Smith takes ‘winning basketball’ dig at Inside the NBA co-host Shaq
“When he got drafted, on one of the first nights here, I said, ‘In three to four years, he’s the MVP of this league,” two-time champion Smith said.
“Not only did I have confidence in what I saw, but also going to the Spurs, they’ve always put the right people around the right people.
“And here he is, on the verge of being one or two in the MVP votes, his team is going to be winning basketball games in such a short time, and he’s playing winning basketball.
“Shaq, I don’t even know, was it your third year when you started playing winning basketball?”
Without saying a word, the NBA legend appeared to take offense.
Smith noticed the mood had shifted, and continued: “Why you looking at me (like that?)
“You didn’t play winning basketball your first year — did y’all make the playoffs your first year?”
Shaq then responded: “No… but we made it our second year. We got to the Eastern Conference Finals in my second year.”
Not one to back off, ‘The Jet’ then doubled down on his point and insisted he was actually trying to compliment his colleague.
“Winning basketball is winning it all. (The Spurs) are going to win it all. I was going to give you a compliment and you’re making it into something bad,” he laughed.
Shaq, though, clearly wasn’t happy that Smith played down his run to the NBA Finals in 1995, which saw the Orlando Magic beat the Indiana Pacers to take the Eastern Conference crown.
“You gave a statement from the first to third (year) — you went from one to three, when there’s two,” he said.
“There’s one, two, three. And I made the Eastern Conference Finals (in Year 2).”
Charles Barkley jumps to Shaq’s defense after Kenny Smith diss
The slander was so strong that Barkley, who went viral for his Los Angeles Lakers slander over the weekend, jumped to the defense of his former rival.
NBA’s Greatest
“Hey man, why did you do that?” he asked Smith, before insisting ‘The Jet’ was going at Shaq.
“What year did you play winning basketball? He made the conference finals in his second year… you said it took three years or more.”
As heat came at him from every angle, Smith reluctantly admitted ‘a slight mistake’ to end the hilarious interaction.
“I apologize to you,” he told Shaq.
Was Kenny Smith right to call out Shaq over ‘Year 2’ claim?
However, the apology might not have actually been necessary.
Shaq was drafted in 1992, and missed the playoffs in his rookie year.
He then went to the postseason in Year 2, where the Magic were swept by the Pacers in the First Round.
Orlando then bounced back a year later, beating the Pacers en-route to the Finals.
Shaq appeared to get his years mixed up, unless he was suggesting that he started to play ‘winning basketball’ in his second year of making the playoffs.
While he might have rattled the two basketball greats with his argument about Wemby, there’s little doubt over the point Smith was trying to make.
San Antonio’s superstar is destined for glory, and has the tools to emulate Shaq’s great career — which saw the big man win four titles.
Right now, though, Wemby is chasing his first ring, and faces a tough test against the Timberwolves in the West semifinals series.
Minnesota won Game 4 114-109 on Sunday night to tie the series at 2-2, with the action heading back to Texas on Tuesday night.
Stay up to date with the NBA across all our talkSPORT platforms – subscribe to our YouTube channel for the latest news, opinion, exclusive interviews and our daily unfiltered, unscripted show ‘The S* Word, from 8am ET
Inside the NBA descended into chaos as Charles Barkley jumped in to defend Shaquille O’Neal.
It came after Kenny Smith claimed the legendary center didn’t play ‘winning basketball’ until three years into his storied career.
Ahead of Game 4 between the San Antonio Spurs and Minnesota Timberwolves on Sunday night, the crew got into a heated discussion about Spurs phenom Victor Wembanyama’s potential.
Smith suggested ‘The Alien’, who was ejected during the game over a nasty elbow, is on the verge with San Antonio in his third year, and couldn’t resist a cheeky comparison with Shaq.
Kenny Smith takes ‘winning basketball’ dig at Inside the NBA co-host Shaq
“When he got drafted, on one of the first nights here, I said, ‘In three to four years, he’s the MVP of this league,” two-time champion Smith said.
“Not only did I have confidence in what I saw, but also going to the Spurs, they’ve always put the right people around the right people.
“And here he is, on the verge of being one or two in the MVP votes, his team is going to be winning basketball games in such a short time, and he’s playing winning basketball.
“Shaq, I don’t even know, was it your third year when you started playing winning basketball?”
Without saying a word, the NBA legend appeared to take offense.
Smith noticed the mood had shifted, and continued: “Why you looking at me (like that?)
“You didn’t play winning basketball your first year — did y’all make the playoffs your first year?”
Shaq then responded: “No… but we made it our second year. We got to the Eastern Conference Finals in my second year.”
Not one to back off, ‘The Jet’ then doubled down on his point and insisted he was actually trying to compliment his colleague.
“Winning basketball is winning it all. (The Spurs) are going to win it all. I was going to give you a compliment and you’re making it into something bad,” he laughed.
Shaq, though, clearly wasn’t happy that Smith played down his run to the NBA Finals in 1995, which saw the Orlando Magic beat the Indiana Pacers to take the Eastern Conference crown.
“You gave a statement from the first to third (year) — you went from one to three, when there’s two,” he said.
“There’s one, two, three. And I made the Eastern Conference Finals (in Year 2).”
Charles Barkley jumps to Shaq’s defense after Kenny Smith diss
The slander was so strong that Barkley, who went viral for his Los Angeles Lakers slander over the weekend, jumped to the defense of his former rival.
NBA’s Greatest
“Hey man, why did you do that?” he asked Smith, before insisting ‘The Jet’ was going at Shaq.
“What year did you play winning basketball? He made the conference finals in his second year… you said it took three years or more.”
As heat came at him from every angle, Smith reluctantly admitted ‘a slight mistake’ to end the hilarious interaction.
“I apologize to you,” he told Shaq.
Was Kenny Smith right to call out Shaq over ‘Year 2’ claim?
However, the apology might not have actually been necessary.
Shaq was drafted in 1992, and missed the playoffs in his rookie year.
He then went to the postseason in Year 2, where the Magic were swept by the Pacers in the First Round.
Orlando then bounced back a year later, beating the Pacers en-route to the Finals.
Shaq appeared to get his years mixed up, unless he was suggesting that he started to play ‘winning basketball’ in his second year of making the playoffs.
While he might have rattled the two basketball greats with his argument about Wemby, there’s little doubt over the point Smith was trying to make.
San Antonio’s superstar is destined for glory, and has the tools to emulate Shaq’s great career — which saw the big man win four titles.
Right now, though, Wemby is chasing his first ring, and faces a tough test against the Timberwolves in the West semifinals series.
Minnesota won Game 4 114-109 on Sunday night to tie the series at 2-2, with the action heading back to Texas on Tuesday night.
Stay up to date with the NBA across all our talkSPORT platforms – subscribe to our YouTube channel for the latest news, opinion, exclusive interviews and our daily unfiltered, unscripted show ‘The S* Word, from 8am ET
💡 Puntos Clave
- Este artículo cubre aspectos importantes sobre Basketball,Los Angeles Lakers,NBA,San Antonio Spurs
- Información verificada y traducida de fuente confiable
- Contenido actualizado y relevante para nuestra audiencia
📚 Información de la Fuente
| 📰 Publicación: | talksport.com |
| ✍️ Autor: | Oliver Browning |
| 📅 Fecha Original: | 2026-05-11 08:27:00 |
| 🔗 Enlace: | Ver artículo original |
Nota de transparencia: Este artículo ha sido traducido y adaptado del inglés al español para facilitar su comprensión. El contenido se mantiene fiel a la fuente original, disponible en el enlace proporcionado arriba.
📬 ¿Te gustó este artículo?
Tu opinión es importante para nosotros. Comparte tus comentarios o suscríbete para recibir más contenido histórico de calidad.
