By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
Rudy Gobert said that there isn’t any beef with Shaquille O’ Neal after the latter repeatedly criticized the French center’s numbers combined with the fact that he got the supermax extension with the Utah Jazz.
It all began with an interview for the “All Things Covered” podcast. It was there that Shaq first took a jab at Gobert, commenting on his new contract by saying: “I’m not gonna hate, but this should be an inspiration to all the little kids out there,” the NBA icon said. “You average 11 points in the NBA, you can get $200 million.”
Shaq gave credit mainly to Gobert’s agent for getting that deal for his client. “He’s got a great agent, and I’m happy for him and his family. With the new rules, you have a pot of money, you have to spend that money. I’m happy for him, but this is a moment for a lot of kids who think they can’t make it.”
For some reason, Shaq made it a bit more personal some days afterward. He posted a photo of him dunking on Gobert on Instagram with the following caption: “I would had 45 pts 16 rebound ten missed free throws in three quarters. He woulda had 11 pts four rebounds and fouled out in 3 quarters. I’m a G.”
This time, Gobert, reacted by replying: “I guess we’ll never know,” paired with a couple of laughing emojis. He later responded to a tweet characterizing the whole thing as “beef” saying: “There is no beef. If people wanna keep speaking negatively about me or keep discrediting what i do it’s on them and all that does is show who they are. I will always be happy for a brother beating the odds. And i’m gonna keep beating the odds.”
Gobert, a late first-round pick in 2013, certainly didn’t get the supermax on “numbers” alone. In the last couple of years, he’s been a two-time DPOY, an All-Star in 2020 while making the NBA’s All-Defensive First Team four times and appearing twice in the Defensive Second Team and two more in the Defensive Third Team.