Shaq admits to jealousy over LeBron being in GOAT conversation
Shaquille O'Neal said he was jealous while interviewing LeBron James about his GOAT status.
After James broke the NBA's scoring record last Tuesday, O'Neal jokingly urged the Los Angeles Lakers star to call himself the greatest basketball player of all time. After James attempted to sidestep the conversation, O'Neal admitted he wouldn't have been as humble.
"It was a professional jealousy moment," O'Neal told Extra's Melvin Robert on Sunday. "If it was me, I would have been arrogant for 19 seconds. ... I know he is a humble kid, I know he is going to give the answer, 'I don't want to be involved in the debate of who the greatest (is).'
"I am jealous of having the conversation. ... Everybody would love to be in that position."
.@SHAQ: “Does this now make you the greatest player of all time?”@KingJames: “I’m gonna take myself against anybody that’s ever played this game. … I always feel like I’m the best to ever play this game.” pic.twitter.com/5mzrZ59GTG
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) February 8, 2023
The 38-year-old James eclipsed Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's mark of 38,387 points to become the NBA's all-time leading scorer in the Lakers' 133-130 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Feb. 7.
O'Neal sits eighth on the all-time list with 28,596 points.