Shaq on NBA Finals, Joining ESPN, Kobe Stories, Being the Black Kelce & A Big Slick Recap | EP 142

24:39I was a little defensive end. Defensive end? When they did the rookie period at the end, I got out there, put my hand on the ground. Nice. You just three steps and then peel off? I was doing nothing. I was running into them. I like to see what their hands feel like, to be honest with you. Ooh, put your hands on me. Conor had already given me the heads up that one of the guys had some pretty good hands and a punch. So I was conveniently on that side. Let me see. I'll be the judge of this, Conor. Out there just getting launched. I wouldn't hate it. I wouldn't hate it. I love it. I'm weird like that.

25:16I wouldn't mind getting screwed up. I'm a little fucked up. I like to get a little dirty. Break your nose. Cool. All right, now. Let's keep this thing moving. It's cool to see you out there on the field again, brother. Before we get to Shaq, time for some no-dumb questions brought to you by Perplexity AI. Discover fast and reliable search with Perplexity AI today. From Animal or Anime in a Day Dude. Out of curiosity, if Kings Island or Cedar Point designed a Kelsey-themed roller coaster, what kind of coaster would it be? How fast would it go? And how many times would it go upside down? interesting i don't think i've ever seen a ride where you're literally upside down the entire ride so i think that would be pretty cool like you get in it and immediately just turn upside down and it fucking takes off i like that sounds really fun i do love roller coasters that go upside down i like ones that like spin you around i'm a big fan of those i'm also a big fan of the the high hills the big drops yeah i feel like that's not i feel like a kelsey theme is like a splash mountain.

26:25We're more of a splash mountain kind of crew. You think so? I don't know. I thought it was cool. It's not water. It's something else you're getting splashed with. Garage beer? Garage beer. It's a lake of garage beer. You're forcing everyone to be drunk and get sticky? Oh no, you're just covered with it. That sounds miserable. Nobody's going to go on this. What were your favorite rides growing up? Millennium Force. Big Drop. Big Dipper. I like wooden roller coasters. Son of Beast was good too. First wooden roller coaster ever be a loop. They had to take it down though because it was unsafe. Shocker.

26:58Very unsafe. Son of Beast. What else? I love the Manus. The Manus. The Manus was a stand-up one. Yeah. It was. What's the... The Raptor was the first one as soon as you go into the left. Raptor was really good. That was really good. I looked up all of the Cedar Point roller coasters on Perplexity. The Raptor is very good. I think they might have renamed it. Maverick wasn't bad either. It's one of those ones where you go forward and then backward, right? And one of mine was like the power tower. You remember that thing? Power tower. One that you would just go straight up and straight down. Yep.

27:35Yep. It's like a drop-in. Oh, my gosh. Just the entire time, it just feels like you're free-falling and then getting rocketed straight up into the air. That was also the most terrifying one for me because I was just like – there was just like the seat and then I was 40 stories up in the air. That one is scary. I would say it would have to be a mixture. I remember going to Disney Quest as a kid. We already talked about Disney Quest. And you could literally create your own roller coaster at Disney Quest. It was very cool. And I remember I just kept doing loops. I was like, I just want to keep going in circles, guys.

28:06That's a good point. And so a lot of loops, a lot of big drops, and you're upside down the whole time. Upside down the whole time. That's my roller coaster. I mean, people are going to pass out if they're upside down the whole time, right? No, not if you do the loops. When you do the loops, you come back up, and then you go back upside down. It's not a bad idea. Sounds pretty exciting to me. I also just like a good old-fashioned Gravitron. Just spin that thing around really fast and drop the floor, and then I'm stuck to the wall. No, no, no, no. Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah. I know what you're talking about now, yeah.

28:41Yeah, the one that was like a giant barrel, and it would just spin. Yeah. It would just be glued to the wall. You're an idiot. That was the simplest concept ever. Sometimes simple is better. I don't know. That's it for No Dumb Questions brought to you by Perplexity. Let's get to the Shaq interview. Thanks again to our partner, Audible. Oh, nice delivery. Craving your next action-packed adventure? Audible delivers thrills of every kind on your command. From electrifying suspense. Yeah! Look at that. Baby. Got the glasses on. He means business. You put those glasses on like a Superman's outfit right there, baby.

29:27What up, brothers? The Diesel. Sorry I'm late. Oh, no sorries, man. How we doing, Black Kelsey? We doing good? Oh, yeah, we good. Black Kelsey, that's what they call me. That was so funny. Oh, man. Oh, gosh. All right. Who's the guy in the green fucking shirt? I'm Brandon. That's intern Brandon. Oh, intern. I'm doing my best. Make my way up in the world. Yeah, yeah, you're good, Brandon. Thank you. Let's roll. Our guest today is 7 '1", center from Louisiana State University. That's right. He's a 15-time NBA All-Star, four-time NBA champion, three-time Finals MVP. God damn. A league MVP, Olympic gold medalist, and an NBA Hall of Famer.

30:20You know him as the big shamrock, the big Aristotle, the Superman, Shaq this, the days, oh, we got him. A.K.A. the Black Kelty brother. Let's go. 92 %ers, can you dig it? Please welcome Shaquille O 'Neal. Yeah, baby. You know what's crazy? I was thinking if we would have grown up together, we would have fucking been great. Us three at the same high school, I would have been fucking good. It would have been so fun. It would have been fucking mayhem. We would have had a blast, man. You would have blended in perfectly in the heights, baby. Yes, I would have. Man alive. Appreciate you joining. Well, how are we doing?

31:04I can't complain. Thanks for having me. You know, I love both of you guys. I want to say I'm proud of both of you guys, and I appreciate our friendship. I know we don't see each other a lot, but when we do see each other, it's all love and respect. Always, man. Even though I am who I am, I'm still a fan of the game and a fan of sports and the way you two gave your all. Much appreciated. You know it, baby. Thank you so much. We took notes about how you played it and how you've done it in life. Hell yeah. I'm still taking notes about how you did it. You got to get me on the DJ booth, man. You got to teach me your ways, dog.

31:38Yeah. Brother, I got you. I got you. Whatever you got. And you know what's crazy? You opening up for your girlfriend, bro, you'll be a fucking star. Ten minutes. Ten minutes. Hyping up the crowd. Oh, my God. I got a nice little ten minutes for you. You know I'm a hype man. You can get a rocket in there. So good. Have the Swifties bouncing off the walls before Tiggins out there. Speaking of Swifties, your brother did something nobody else in the world can do. He walked me right over. I got to shake her hand. Oh, nice. And, you know, she was with Ice Spice. I was more on Ice Spice than I was on your one.

32:13But thank you, brother. I appreciate you very much. Ice Spice is awesome. I was like, hey, Taylor. Oh, my God. Ice Spice? Hey, boo-boo. How you doing? Man, that was awesome. That was awesome. That was the Super Bowl I like to remember. No, man. I appreciate you saying that, man. You mentioned this already. You were on Inside the NFL, and you said if you played in the NFL, you'd be known as a black house. we're going to play this link for anybody that hasn't seen that clip yet. We thought this was one of the funniest things we've ever seen. Brandon, can we play the clip? Let's go, intern. This is what happens when you have interns that work for you.

32:50He's on your ass. Intern. What NBA players do you think would transition well into our sport? Me. I'm in. Wait, wait. Yeah, I like this. No, no, that's right. You're too big and too much of a target to play tight end, though. I am not. You know what they would call me? They would call me the black Kelsey.

33:13That was my man Ocho Cinco giving it back to you. A lot of people don't know this, that, you know, when I was coming up, football was my sport. Okay, so you played? Yeah, I was football all the way, and I was really good. I used to tell people Tuto Jones was my father. Okay. I really played, and I played a nose guard on defense, and I played tight end on offense. You played nose guard? That's what I'm saying, baby. Baby, I knew you were tied in, man. And I used to bring the pain. Yeah. I can only imagine. All the kids in school, they used to talk trash. And, you know, this was like in the days when you could like rough people up and try to hurt them.

33:51Oh, yeah. It was that guy. It was encouraged. And then one day my junior year, I scored. And a little freaking dude hit me on the side of my knee. And I was out for about eight weeks. So, you know, football is my thing. And then my father came in the house one day and smacked me in the back of the head with a paper. He's like, you need to fucking stop playing football and focus on basketball. And when I opened up the paper, John Koncak had just signed 15 for three. Wow. Yes. So I'm like, first of all, who is John Koncak? My dad was like, I got some tickets. We're going to go watch them. I was living in San Antonio at the time.

34:28So the Hawks were playing the Spurs. And no disrespect to John Koncak. He was an NBA. He was a pro. He was a good player. Made a lot of money, it sounds like. Yeah, you made a lot of money. But I was doing the things in high school like he was doing in the pros. And I was like, shit, if this dude was making$15 for$3, my dream was to make$8 million for 10 years. That's my whole dream coming up. I wanted to make$8 million for 10 years. And I had it all set up. I wanted a Mercedes Benz. I wanted a Jimmy Bronco. That was my whole thing. So I started playing basketball. But I used my football pain experience when I was playing basketball.

35:04Like when I turned with the elbows up, I'm trying to knock your teeth out your mouth. Oh, yeah. So, you know, people always go back to the hacker shack and it's like, oh, he got fouled a lot. I never felt it. That's because of my football prowess and my football experience. But I think if I would have stuck with football, I probably would have definitely made tight end. Like I hate when people look at me and be like, oh, you'll be a good offensive. I'm not a lineman. I'm a showman. In the 90s for sure. You running up and down the floor. I can see it right now. Wow. People that say that don't remember Orlando Shaq, right?

35:36They don't remember him running the court like that. That's when they don't remember. Duh. We had a play in high school on the goal line, alley-oop on three. Yeah. Alley-oop on three? I go five yards in and turn towards the corner, and you just fucking throw it up, and I would fucking go get it and snag it. I used to watch – I'm about to go to Coach Reed right the fuck now. Yes, I used to go – Well, Kelly Winslow. Oh, yeah. Senior. And all those guys. Yeah. So, yeah. So, you know, football was my sport. That's awesome. I believe it. Every time they ask me to do these rosters, build an NFL roster, who you picking?

36:14I'm picking Shaq every day of the week. Because you did play basketball like an NFL player. Like, anybody that watched you play in the post is like, yeah, that dude could rush the passer. He could catch the ball. Like, he could do it all. I don't know. Just put him out on the field. I ain't worried about it one minute. And I'm going to send you a picture of me winning my first punt, pass, and kick contest. Yes! At Fort Mamas, New Jersey. Man, please send that. Please send that. Did you have the whole outfit on? No, I just had like sweatpants and a t-shirt and everything. Because Coach Reed has one out there where he's got the full Rams getup on.

36:50The helmet, the shoulder pads. Oh, man, that's hilarious. I saw that. Was that him when he was like 12? That was really him. Yes. That's him? Bigger than every kid out there. That wasn't him. Yes, yes. He tells the story. I saw that clip the other day. I was like, who the fuck is that? He was dominating them little kids. That's too funny. I have to ask you this right off the jump, big guy. Was it not allowed for you to go straight to the league? Or did you just want that college experience or that LSU experience? It was, but my father was so big on education. I got you. He was really big on education.

37:26I got you. He did a great job of teaching me horror stories. I always tell this story, and some people may take it the wrong way, but I really appreciate what he did. The day Len Bias passed away from coke, my father came in and touched me up very nice. And the message was, if I ever catch you doing drugs, I will fucking kill you. Wow. So I didn't know who Len Bias was, and he came in the house fucking crying, uniform to all of them. And he just fucking grabbed me. If I ever catch you with Coke, I will fucking kill you. And in my mind, I was like, Dad, we drink Pepsi. He was like, I'm not fucking, no, seriously.

38:05Because I'm like, I think I'm like 13 at the time, but he felt like that was his son. He felt like a guy that had it all, was going to be the number one pick, get drafted by the Boston Celtics, and he made a terrible mistake and he passed away. So I never did that. I always stayed away from that. But every time an athlete got in trouble, I would sort of get in trouble for it. So every time I, you know, when I became a professional athlete, all the stuff that was in my mind, especially athletes that five years after they play, they don't have any money. I was really, really conscious about, you know, business and saving money and, you know, doing the right thing.

38:43Hell yeah. I'm telling you, Diesel, I'm still taking notes by how you're doing stuff. You've done it such a professional way, your professionalism on the court, off the court, in the business world, man. I've been taking notes for a long time, man. You've been doing it the right way. Well, thank you. I appreciate it. And I'm taking notes from you guys, too. You guys are doing your thing. Do you ever wonder what it would have been like playing in, like, today's NBA with all of the social media and the podcasts? And it's like, you were a larger-than-life NBA figure, not just as a player, but, like, major motion pictures coming out.

39:17What do you mean? Kazam? Are you fucking kidding me? I was about to ask him why he stopped being in the acting world. Hey, second favorite genie. I'll give Robin Williams a nod. Robin Williams gets one. But Shaq is getting my second favorite genie ever. Yes. So I always tell athletes it's okay to be professional jealousy of somebody else. Like I'm jealous of you guys. You guys podcast is fucking killing. He's making money. But instead of using that to create envy, I use that to create motivation. So to answer your question, if I was playing, I'd be a trillionaire. I believe it. Because when I use social media, I said to myself, like, when I first got on social media, I was showing off.

40:05And then my mother got on social media. She was so disappointed. She's like, baby, you don't have to show off your gold chains and your cars. So I had to figure out a way to use social media. So I use 60 % to make you laugh, 30 % to inspire you. Like if I see something inspirational or cool or anything, I'll forward it. And then the last 10 % is, hey, this is Shaq for Beatbox. This is Shaq for ICI. So I do it like that. I probably would have had the same method growing up if I would have made so much money. I'm writing this shit down. I'm telling you, it's brilliant, man. Business mind. And then you got a lot of bums making a lot of money.

40:43And you guys know this. Like, if it's a tight end making a certain amount, he's making more than you, and he did that, you're going to use that as motivation. Oh, this motherfucker had 12 touchdowns, and he's making 100 million. You're going to go out and get 19 touchdowns, and then just tell your agent, hey, they're getting a new deal. So I would definitely love to play in this era. I would still bring the football pain, and I would be different. You know, I'd be watching these podcasts. Oh, Shaq couldn't play in this era. He couldn't guard a three. They're out of their minds. It would be simple.

41:15As soon as Joker shoots a three, I'm going to run right past him, and I'm going to pulse up in the lane for 100 seconds. So if you hit the three, good. But I know by the time we get the ball and throw it down, I'm definitely going to hit the two. You hit more twos than you hit threes. So I would probably only shoot a three like if we got up. But I would not go away from my strength. My strength is power and height, so I'm going to take the high percentage shots because if I'm averaging 30, it's an easy job for my agent. If I'm standing out there shooting threes and averaging 15, that's a tough job.

41:47But if I'm averaging 30, scoring a lot of points, and my agent can say, hey, Rudy Gobert got 250. Me and Shaq, we want 700. There we go. We want 700. If Rudy's getting 250, that's what I'm saying. He's more dominant, so the numbers got to make sense. Do you think the modern NBA is missing that aggression in that way? because it wasn't just you that used to play that game. Like, the post, it used to be a much more physical game. It's all of sports nowadays, you know. You can't hit anybody. Baseball, you can't even fucking block the plate at home. But that was one of the reasons I wanted men to, like, after the Cavs got eliminated, one of the reasons I was rooting for the Timberwolves is because Anthony Edwards looked like he was mad the entire game.

42:28I'm like, at least this guy's showing some aggression. I like the way this guy's playing. Exactly. You're right. I wish in this thing of ours it was ran by us. I hear you. I like that. Like, for example, when you guys retire, the NFL just brings everybody in. Okay, you, you, you, and you. You got all these people that are changing the game. Like, our NBA All-Star format is terrible. It's tough, man. It's terrible. It's tough. It used to be the most exciting weekend of all sports, man. I don't know who's in charge, but it's terrible. So, to answer your question, the league is getting soft. The game is getting soft.

43:06and it's going to take a couple of people to bring him back. Like, I don't – I hate big guys shooting threes. Victor Wimby Young is a great player, but I would love to just see him dominate so much that people start complaining and they change rules like when I do. Like, I could shoot, but I'm not going to shoot a three. Why would I shoot a three when I could put your little ass in the basket and dunk on you? Put these balls in your face. Oh, yes! I'm getting so freaking fired up right now. Yes. that was amazing that was amazing before we get to your documentary because I definitely want to pump that up man I gotta ask you now that we're talking about balls in your face what exact who do you think gave you like the hardest time playing like who defended you the best what teams did that or the little guys always defended me the best the Charles Oakley's the Anthony Mason's Yeah, the four guys I had problems with.

44:04I didn't really have any problems with any big guys. The big guy that taught me the most valuable lesson is Akeem Olajuwon. Because the year we made it to the finals, we beat Michael Jordan, the greatest player ever. So I already thought the job was done. And then we had 10 days off. And living in Orlando, you're going to restaurants. It's standing ovations. And, you know, you're getting extra deals. And it's the parades. And, you know, me and one of my other teammates were jumping on private planes. We're going to Miami and party. And, you know, because I like to get ready three days before. But you got 10 days off.

44:39I couldn't be like this for 10 days. So I'm like, you know what? Let me take a couple days off. We're definitely going to win. I'm playing against Akeem. We won one. We won one. He's the same size. We're definitely going to win. But he taught me never to celebrate too early. So when we played in the finals, I didn't see that Akeem. And they had just won the year before. So they were going for it back to back and he just fucking taught me a lesson. So I always said to myself, if I get back to the finals again, I'm going to dominate so fucking much that it won't be a question of who's going to win.

45:08So, you know, he kind of got his way in that finals. Me and Dave Robinson, probably even me and Tim Duncan, probably even me and Patrick Ewan, even me and Alonzo, even like we always try to, you know, cancel each other out. I couldn't stop them. They couldn't stop me. But the guys like Charles Oakley and fucking Karl Malone, the little guys that can get into your – Get leverage underneath you. Yeah, get leverage. Yeah, those are the ones that gave me problems. Rick Mahorn had this move because he was a big body. He put his body on you. And as soon as I'd fucking go backwards, he would move and I would fucking fall along.

45:42Pull the chair on you? Yes, yeah. That one. That move right there. Man, that's crazy. Let's go ahead and shine some light on the new documentary called Power Moves out now on Netflix. We got the trailer, but if you want to, please tell us about it. Yeah, let us know what we're getting into. So when I was coming out of high school, I went to Nike and I went to Reebok. Reebok gave me my own deal because, you know, I wanted to have my own shoe and all that. So signed with Reebok, got away from Reebok a little while, started my own shoe brand, which is still out there. Shaq brand still doing very well.

46:20So now I'm sitting around one day. And again, this is like this, you know, professional jealousy thing. So I go see a lot of kids, right? And I get them whatever they want. Hey, man, what you want? Shoes. So one kid's like, hey, I want some Jordans. So I bring them. I bring a whole bunch of Jordans to the place because I don't really care. like a Jordan, Under Armour, whatever the kids want, I'm going to take care of it. So the kid goes, no, man, I want some Jordan 11s. I'm like, what the fuck is Jordan 11s? And so I go look, and Jordan got all these fucking shoes. So now I'm jealous and I'm pissed.

46:53I'm like, the fuck? Where are the Shaq ones, the Shaq twos, the Shaq three? Yeah, so I called Reebok, and he was like, hey, man, we've been purchased by Adidas, and we're not really doing much. I'm like, what do you mean we're not doing much? we need to fucking do a deal now. We get some Shaq ones, two, three. So the company that I'm with, authentic brands group, I went to my guys, Jamie and Corey. I was like, man, we need to buy a Reebok. Cause I remember at a time we were never number one, but we were never number three. We was always a respectable number two. They got Mike. We got Shaq. Y 'all got LeBron and Kobe and all those guys.

47:27And we got AI. We was right there in the conversation. The first valuable lesson I learned. Cause when I came in, I was like, Hey man, where's the high tops? Dave's like, we don't do high tops. I don't give a fuck what you don't do. We're doing high tops. Come on now. I brought my son in to help me speak the language of these youngsters. Because as you guys know, these fucking youngsters are crazy. Different dudes, man. Different dudes, man. So my son was very smart. I told him very well. He knows that he can't confront me. So he said, Dad, I want you to come to the tournament with me. So I go to the tournament.

48:01He's like, I don't want you to watch the game. I just want you to look at all the shoes. And I'm like, okay, smart guy, low tops. And I'm talking 20 fucking courts, not just one court. It's like a stadium full of courts. Low tops, low tops. I was like, holy shit. Everybody was right. We don't even do high tops no more. Everybody's shooting threes, man. But like I said about the championship experience, I said, okay, I know I'm the president, but pipe down a little bit. And you don't have to, you know, you know, come in with your shoulders all broad. Just listen to the people and see what they say and just be a great teammate.

48:33So we launched our first shoe in Janae. And the first signing I had to make was Angel Reese because I know her. Oh, yeah. The LSU connection. That's right. She's the type that. So I went to her and I said, listen, I could do something nobody's going to do for you. What's that? So I can give you your own shoe. You want to go to Nike and wear everybody else's shoe or you want to have your own shoe? Like it took Asia Wilson, the best player in the league. She's been in the league all night long, but she just now got her first shoe. I said, I can do that for you right away. So that was my first signing.

49:05We're going to go young. I signed a couple of young guys, and we're just going to regrow the brand and just keep putting ourselves in position because it's a lot of – it's way too many shoe brands out there now. When I was coming up, it was Nike, Reebok, and maybe Converse, and maybe Puma. And I'll say this, not to interrupt you, Shaq. Please do this and do it right because there are so – not only are there so many shoe brands, they're all such shit. They're made so cheap, they don't feel good. Trav knows this. I've been complaining about cleats in the NFL for the last, what, 10 years, Trav? Something has happened.

49:42I don't know if they've gone to cheaper materials or what's happened, but my feet don't feel right. It's definitely the materials. They're going for lighter materials. You guys have a shoe deal? Trav does. I got an on-the-field deal, yeah. Off the field is – I wear Jordans on the field. Like they're there because they have that old school retro Jordan high top from the 90s that I really. I don't know how long your deal is, but whenever you want to talk about Kelsey clicks at Reebok, I could fucking walk you in. You're going to be so excited. I'm serious. I could I could walk you in personally.

50:18I got the key card. We get the football pumps going, baby. OK, well, so hey, whenever you want to talk business, let me know. Reebok was, they were sponsors. People forget they were the NFL sponsor when I first got it. They did everything. All of them. Jerseys, you name it. So, you know, Adidas did a wonderful job by purchasing them and then taking all their deals. I was like, it was actually a brilliant move by Adidas. But now we're coming back. All right. Love it. This is awesome, man. I cannot wait to see Power Moves out on Netflix now. Did you and Iverson, did you have any sway in bringing Iverson to Reebok?

50:56Yes. because I'm at the point in my life where it's never been all about me. And I realized that I was the man at Reebok, but AI took it to that next level. Oh, yeah. Because, again... His inspiration throughout the league is crazy. Throughout the world, I should say. I'm a big guy, and I know I'm loved by many, but little guys are always loved and always admired for some reason. Hey, man, I got a question. Hey, don't be selling that. For some reason. AI is big, but hey, come on now, Shaq, come on. I have a question. How come they didn't use you a lot at the Super Bowl? I know you were fucking pissed.

51:33Like, I don't want to get you in trouble because I know you're an AT &T. You already know. We were trying to use all the pieces, man. No, no, fuck all the pieces. I need the pieces to help us win the first fucking Super Bowl. Yeah, don't be trying to do new shit. Like, I don't want you to say they didn't get in trouble, but I wasn't happy about that. I appreciate that. I appreciate that. The Eagles are doing a pretty good job of bracketing me and shit like that. No, stop it. Will you fucking stop it, dot com? Stop trying to be fucked. I tell you what. You don't have to talk, but I'm going to talk for you.

52:05Coach, coach, he's fucking 6 '8". Throw him the goddamn ball. Single coverage, double coverage, goal line, alley-oop, coach. That's a play you call it. Alley-oop, baby. Alley-oop. I'm telling you, I'm going to Coach Reed with that one right now. And wait until you see this year, baby. I'm coming back with a little bit of that Shaq fucking pissed off. And ready to rock and roll, man. I know you are. All right, let's talk about the finals. How about that? What are we thinking? Pacers, Thunder, who do you think is going to take it? I think it's going to be a very interesting finals. You get all these experts to talk about, oh, the big market teams aren't there.

52:41Well, the big market teams ain't fucking good enough. They ain't good enough. It is what it is. So now you got Shea Gilgis-Alexander, who's the best player in the league. Okay. And you got a guy on the other side, Tyrese Halliburton. You call him overrated. You kick his father out the stadium. You know, you're starting off at Madison Square Garden. You're never going to win there. And they pull it off, and they win. I think it's going to be very exciting. I think it'll either be a sweep or a close series or OKC wins 42. Like, you talk about Shea and you talk about Tyrese, they're probably going to, well, I don't want to say level each other out.

53:20I know Tyrese is going to do his thing. Shea is going to do his thing. But J-Dub scares me. Uh-huh. J-Dub, that motherfucker can play. If he has great games, OKC by far. But if Indiana can somehow slow him down, I think they have a chance. I think it's going to be fun to watch. You've got two young teams that they run. They shoot threes. I think it's going to be very, very interesting. I'm actually doing game one and two, so I will be there live in the flesh. I can get a better feel at the game, too. But right now, I think OKC has a nod for everybody thinking they're going to win. But Indiana's not going to quit.

53:57I believe it. I believe it. I'll tell you what, though, man. OKC is about three hours from Kansas City. I might have to go up and catch a game. No, you take your ass to OT. I'm working. I'm working, but a three-hour drive after practice isn't terrible. I got a question. What does OTE stand for? I always hear that. Jason knows this one. I don't know this one. Organized team activities. There you go. Oh, OTAs. Okay, got it. Okay. Yeah, I'm like. I always thought it was off-season training activities and some shit. And are they mandatory? No. Okay. You got four days. You got four days is mandatory.

54:35Every team has a minicamp where it's mandatory. Okay, because I see guys on. The minicamp is the only thing. Okay, because I see guys on boats and water parks. and smacking the ass in the video. I'm like, aren't they supposed to be at the OTAs? I ain't going to say no names. I'll let you figure it out. I'm like, damn. Smacking the ass. That was a wild video. That was a wild video. I love. What is the – you played in the finals six times, Shaq. What is there that I guess is different about playing in the finals as opposed to the rest of the postseason or regular season? It's different because whoever you think you are, whoever they say you are, now it's time to prove it.

55:18First time I went. It just fucking got me fired the fuck up. Exactly. First time I went, oh, he's the new face of the league. He beat Jordan. Him and Penny were the next Magic Johnson. And then we get swept. So now I'm fucking pissed. So now I got to come in the next season and try to do it all over again. It's like making a fucking perfect sandwich, and it's your last piece of bread, and you fucking drop it. And you fucking drop it. Everybody knows that feeling, man. Yeah, that's what I'm saying. Everybody knows that perfect sandwich. Not only do you drop it, you drop it on the dirtiest fucking floor, and the meat goes over here, and you see a fucking bug run on top of your bread.

55:59So now you're like, fuck, I got to start all over. And then, as you know, being great athletes, it's not guaranteed the next year. Nope. Right. So then I fucking go back and I lose again. Then I was like, you know what? I'm going to another team. And then you get swept. And then you get swept. And then you lose. And then you get swept. You just fucking, it's just, ah. So I've always said to myself, if I get back, I'm going to let people know I am what I say I am. And I am what the fuck you think I am. And I'm going to prove it. So that's why that first final, I tried to damn average 40. Like, I always said to myself, you need to average seven points a quarter and then maybe eight points a quarter when you get to the postseason.

56:39But I was like, you know, I need to average 10 points a quarter. Free throws or not, I need to somehow average fucking 40. So, when I got that first one, it was a relief. And five buckets a quarter, like, that sounds so doable for the Diesel. You know what I mean? It is. That's what I'm saying. Yeah. Damn. If you break it down like that, fuck. When I got that first one, I was like, yeah, what the fuck you motherfuckers going to say now? Give me my props. And then they let you rest for two days, but then can he do it again? Right. Yeah. I'm like, fuck, you're challenging me again? You're challenging me again.

57:11Oh, he likes to do rap albums and fucking movies. And he shouldn't have won this one or this and that. And the referee did that. So I'm like, OK. So now I go get two. And then I'm like, OK. Say it. Say I'm the fucking best in the league. Just fucking say it. Oh, can it be a dynasty like Kareem imagined? Fuck. It's always something, man. Yeah, the fact. And then I give all the credit to my father because growing up, after you win, you take the trophy away. Like you remember playing youth football on Saturday and come to the house in a little cookout. By Sunday, that motherfucker's nowhere to be found.

57:55So one day, finally, I got the courage to ask him, be like, hey, man, where are my trophies at? I don't know, motherfucker. Go get another one. So that's why growing up, football, baseball, basketball, track and field, I did everything except wrestling. So it was just like I'm trying to get another trophy just to put in the house just to impress him. So when I got that first NBA Finals MVP trophy, I took it to the house. We had a party. And he's like, you know this motherfucker's staying with me, right? I wanted to take him to my house. He's like, what do you mean? You know the routine. You know the routine.

58:35Go for it. I'm like, for what? These motherfuckers on ESPN talking shit about you. They told him, look, it was like never enough for him. Never enough, baby. It's never enough. And so now when I sit back and look at all the stuff that I did, I really think. You already know, you've got to start from square one. You've got to get back to the basics early on in the offseason. You got to build that thing so that by the time you're into, you know what I mean, the beginning of the season, even then you still have to build it throughout the season. So that's great fatherly advice right there, man. Yeah.

59:09So I just wish these teams well. Ask me anything, fuckers. Let's do it. We're brothers and we're brothers and we're brothers. I got to ask you. What was your favorite version of Shaq? Was your favorite version of Shaq in L.A., of Orlando? Like what was your favorite stop? My favorite stop would probably be L.A. Because I had another guy with me that was just as crazy as I was. Nice. And, you know, a lot of people, like, if you had all over to do it, given to have a better relationship, what would you do? The answer is nothing. Yeah. I know I drove them crazy. Because as a leader, that's what you do.

59:49I'm sure there's a lot of guys on your football team that you know they're really good, but you know they can be a whole lot better. So you push them. You push their buttons. Like, I used to tell him he wasn't great. Like, I don't give a fuck what they say about you. This is my fucking team. I'm the man, motherfucker. And you follow suit. And he used to drive them crazy. Yeah. Used to drive them crazy. But I know that, like, listen, I know I got to average 20, 30. What you going to do, you little punk? And he was trying to always outdo me. So once we. And he's a competitor. So, right. That's what I'm saying.

1:00:19You already know he's going to try and answer that bell. So, field develop a system. Go to fucking Shaq early. get him involved. If he's not hitting the free throws, Kobe is your show. And that system fucking worked. And it worked and it worked and it worked. So all the problems y 'all thought we had were not really lifestyle, realistic problems. They were workplace big brother, little brother problems. Like I'm I asked you, Jason, about did you and Travis ever fight? And you told me one story, but I know that's a million fucking stories. Oh yeah. Oh yeah. But if you look at the outcome, both of y 'all are great.

1:00:55I know you push your little brother Travis to be great. I know he probably wanted to outdo you and beat you up and all that stuff, but it causes greatness. Like, you know, when you're a leader, you either focus on the relationship or you focus on the task. I am focusing on the task. And sometimes when you focus on the task, the relationship may dwindle. My favorite documentaries are looking at these teams and like, holy shit, you thought the Bulls run was perfect? Yeah, right. I didn't know they had to. But that was the greatest documentary in my life because, you know what, it made me feel like I was normal.

1:01:27The whole shit that I was doing, I was like, Mike did the same shit. Right. I'm not crazy. Thank you, Jordan. Scotty and Mike. You got to have a little crazy in you, man. You just got to have a little crazy in you. Keep everybody on edge. You do. I'm glad you brought that up because I watched that documentary. One of the guys I had a lot of respect for that I'd always thought Phil just got surrounded by great players. I was one of those naive people. And then you watch that documentary, see how great he was at getting the best out of all of the players and the personalities. And like, what was it like playing for him in LA?

1:02:00You know, Phil treated you like a man. Yeah. Like I always used to go to Phil's like, Hey man, you better get this little motherfucker. No, seriously. I'm like, you better get them. And Phil was like, no. I'm like, why? He's like, I always want him to have that aggression. And Phil was one of those smooth talk guys, never raised his voice. Like the way he explained these, He's like, if we take his aggression away, we'll ruin him. And you're going to need him down the stretch. Just work through it. So when I was leaving, I was like, this motherfucker just mind fucked me. It worked. He just got me.

1:02:35Yeah. It's so good. Because I used to go in his office and be like, Phil, you better get this motherfucker. You got to handle this shit. I'm going to handle it in a different way. And he was like, no, I'm never taking this aggression away. Michael had that same aggression. I see something in the kid. Y 'all got to work it out. That's so cool, man. He, you know, treated us like, man, like if you go back to those days, like Phil never had really much to say about our so-called problems. Like he said, no, I'm not going to take his aggression. I let him. I'll, you know, hone him in every now and then like, hey, but you're going to need this kid down the stretch.

1:03:09I love it. The first finals, you know, I'm playing great. I'm averaging 40, but it was one game I filed out. I'm like, fuck. and the fucking kid looks at me and he goes like this. And I said, what? He was like, I got you, Diesel. Watch this. And the motherfucker took over the game and he actually helped us regain momentum for this. And then the next thing we both did, I think, and we was able to win our first one. But if he don't go off in that game, I may not be able to get that first one. So I needed him. We used each other. We drove each other crazy. But, you know, I have a little brother and I do the same thing with my little brother.

1:03:45And then when you told me that story, Jason, it made me feel normal. I was like, you know what? A lot of people outside of this thing of ours that don't understand, you understand the language, your brother understands the language, and Kobe understood the language. So, you know, they always ask me, what would you do different? Nothing. Nothing at all. Oh, yeah. I am getting fucking goosebumps right now. He's a real one, man. Yeah, man. It's unbelievable. He's got such a good way of describing it, man. It's fucking, he fires me the fuck up, man. Thank you. What had everybody else fired up and at least emotional was the end of the NBA on TNT the other week man.

1:04:25And after 35 seasons, it was the end of NBA on TNT. But inside the NBA is headed to ESPN. So you guys are staying together, right? Yeah, we're staying together. And, you know, I've been getting a lot of flack about this lately because I have no emotions. Wasn't allowed to have emotions growing up. Of course, when certain things come in, like Kobe passed away, I cried like a baby. My sister passed away, I cried. My father passed away and cried. But other than that, I don't really have emotions. So everybody's sad and all that. But I turned it around, and I just bring it into military style. What I mean by that is when I played in Orlando, it was four years.

1:05:06And you guys know military terms is four years. So I spent one term in Orlando. I played eight years in L.A. I spent two terms there. I played one term in Miami. I've been to TNT for 12 years. That's three terms. Wow. Now it's time to do something different. like you know Ernie my good guy the other day you know he came to focus down on why everybody was sad he's like man we're not going to be able to see TNT anymore and I was like yeah I understand but we're still together the four horsemen are still together and it's time to go to a new army base and take the fuck over and I let everybody know that I'm going to that next network I'm on their ass whoever in the way whoever in the way whoever in the way you're at ESPN yeah so yeah I told them I said hey whoever's in our way We're on our, we don't know what the show's going to be.

1:05:54We don't know what it looked like, but us four together, I'm sure we'll be able to figure out. Oh man. I don't get sad. I don't get happy. Yeah. So. That's showing sports, baby. A lot of people are like, hey man, you need to show emotions. That's not healthy. My thing is, I've been very successful doing it this way. Why would I change? Exactly. Yeah. Imagine me being soft, Jason and Travis. You want me to be soft? You want me to be soft? No, man. We want you to be the diesel, baby. That's what I'm saying. I can't do it. I will have to ask you this. What's your favorite moment from the show on TNT?

1:06:32Charles talking about the women from San Antonio. Oh, my God. And hold on. This is one for the intern to do it later when he's editing. And if you haven't seen Charles talking about women from San Antonio, here's a clip right here. There we go, Shaq. There we go. This guy's a pro. They do have some big old women. I mean, come on now. See what you do to him. Oh, my God. I'm sure living in San Antonio, you saw it from a completely different angle, but that shit's hilarious. We had a moment one time where, like, they never call us in for, like, you know, pregame and tell us what they're going to do.

1:07:09But I get the phone one day, emergency meeting. So we fucking get there, like, 2 o 'clock, shows not till 7. You got all the big wigs come down. and they was like, Charles, you know, you're talking about the women from San Antonio. We need you to apologize. So Charles says, okay. He's like, okay, I'm sorry. So we get to the show and Ernie starts the show and he's like, Ernie, can I say something? He said, you know what? I like to joke around and talk about the people from San Antonio, but if you think I'm going to apologize, you got a whole number of things coming. And just went off. I'm telling you now, if you think I'm going to apologize, hell is going to freeze off.

1:07:47You ain't got to like the show. You can fire me right now. Don't get paid. He just went out. I was like, oh, my God. This is the best thing ever. So good. So good. I'm not apologizing to nothing. Santo was a great time. Y 'all know y 'all got some big old women. I know I just be joking. And he just fucking went out. And I was like, oh, my God. He's the funniest guy ever. In tears, man. What was it like joining the show in 2011? Yeah, compared to how it is right now. I was nervous and I was terrible because I wanted to be on my Brian Gumbel. Oh, okay. And I used my hands. And the producer, TK, called me one day and said, if you keep doing that, you're not going to be there.

1:08:29We want you to be Shaq. I was like, what does that mean? He's like, fucking be Shaq. I was like, oh, I get to do that? Yeah. So once I realized that, I was able to just be myself. Because good game, bad game, doesn't matter. After the show, they want to hear experience. They want to hear stories. And they want to hear tactics from respectable people. Like, I don't know a lot about football. I'm listening to both of you motherfuckers. I know what y 'all did. I'm listening. I don't give a fuck what you say. You should wear pink socks. The motherfucker should wear pink socks. I know what. Listen, I've seen it firsthand what both of you have done in championship situations.

1:09:07So, y 'all are like, ah, to me. So, I know when you listen to a Shaq, you must know what he's talking about. Been here six times. Barkley's a Hall of Famer. uh kenny's wanted to run it twice so you know and then we add a little fun to it a lot of humor to it and i think that's what's always made our show great i don't respect people that don't really know about this thing about us i will respect your opinion but if you ain't really been there and done that it's tough that's just me like there's a lot of great guys that do a lot of great job of commenting but if i can ask how do you know that means that you're a little bit unreliable.

1:09:45Like you guys know, like, you know what it is in the, in the Superbowl situation. You know, it isn't a playoff situation. You know what it is in a must win situation and a bi-week and all that shit. You guys know, I don't know. I'm Shaq, but I'm Shaq over here in this world because I'm a commentator don't mean I know it. So the fact that we all have that experience that people know we have, I think that, and then we're allowed to be ourselves. I think that's what, you know, makes it very, very exciting. All right, we're going to ask this. I know you've been asked this a million times. What's your all-time starting five, Shaq?

1:10:17Curry at the one. Curry, okay. Kobe at the two. Jordan at the three. Tim Duncan at the four. Okay. And me at the five. I mean, goddamn, that's a good-ass team. Nobody's beating that team. But, like, I hate doing these lists because I don't know how your guys are going to edit it. right but let's just say I did that to somebody that didn't like us and then they'll lead it off with Shaq excludes LeBron right and like it causes like you know unnecessary beef that's not the way we do it exactly I know I understand but I'm just saying like I hate doing these lists because you know I don't want people to think I'm dissing them but you ask me my team I need a shooter I need the best shooter in the world second guy I name is a guy who I helped raise I know he's a fucking dog I know what he's going to do Yeah.

1:11:12And the other guy, Jordan, is the guy everybody looks up to. He's on everybody's list. Exactly. And I know Kobe going to be trying to do what Jordan trying to do. So you got Steph shooting threes when I get double. You got Kobe and Michael doing this inner thing. And then you got the big fundamentals taking that motherfucker facing you up shooting off the glass. Off the glass. And then you got me. That's my team. That's it. I mean, that's a fucking... That's a damn good roster right there. Hell yeah. I always hate these lists just because I feel like it's hard to go, when you're going different generations of, at least for football, like I don't know how guys that played in the 80s and 90s would fare up today, or especially guys that played in the 60s are going to play against modern, like the game has changed so much, and I imagine it's similar in the NBA, but And I love those questions because it's really not an answer.

1:11:58Like, we'll never know. So basically, it's your, I've seen a guy in the fucking barbershop almost come to blows. We're talking about if Jordan could play in his hair. I'm talking about they was fucking really good. Motherfucker, who's doing that? I'm just sitting there watching like, and that fucking Jordan could have played. No, he could have. It's just going off. I have a question for you, Travis. What's good? Has anyone ever hit you and made you kind of, and I know you're not a punk. I know you're not scared, but has anybody ever hit you and made you like say, okay, I need to watch out for this motherfucker because he hit me so hard?

1:12:33Bernard Pollard got me my first game ever in the league, And ever since then, my head, I was so much more aware of what coverages they were in before the ball was even snapped. Like, I told myself, I was like, man, I got to stay out of that situation. Because I could have ran my route slightly different to avoid the aggressive head-on collision. He would have still lit my shit up. But I would have at least been going in a different direction than instead of looking back at Alex Smith going directly at him. that was probably the the one time where i was like i got up and was like what the fuck just happened got it like it would took me a second to realize just like because it all happened so fast and i was i was typically a bigger guy in college and amongst you know i mean the big east and and the guys that size benar pollard was six three six six one six three somewhere in there and like a big like old time like safety size so when he hit me i felt like a train just came through and just smoked me i'll give you two i'll give you two shack one brandon spikes i went up against this dude he played for new england i know this dude had the biggest thickest head and we're in training playing the new england patriots we're in training camp we're in training camp we run this we run this little pin and pull play where me and the right guard pull and i'm supposed to block it but he beats me to the hole and just decapitates the right guard.

1:13:59And I'm like, oh, we're strapping up today, boys. Put the mouthpiece in. Like, that's the way it's going to be. Bro, you would hit him and your whole head would hurt. It was crazy. I don't know how – and then another guy, Gerard Davis, who played for Detroit. This motherfucker wouldn't even try and make the tackle. We would be looking at each other right before the play. Like, we know we're both about to hit each other, and he would just – and we would both, like, two rams just playing in the middle of the field, butting heads. so much so that the ref came up to me after like the 10th play of us doing this like the whole game's happening but outside of this whole game it's just me and this dude and we're just butting our head every single and it's like the ref the ref comes up to me in the huddle he's like man you and 40 are really going at i'm like will you tell him to stop i'm like all right so it isn't just in my head this is actually this looks what it feels like dog i'm like this dude was hit so hard i never understood i'm like dude if you just tried to make a tackle you'd probably be one of the best linebackers in the nfl but all he wanted to do was knock people out it was crazy that's crazy that was the league baby i have one more before we get to this last segment i was gonna ask you i just came back to my memory growing up like i know there was nobody that was really you're the most dominant that's ever done it because of the size, your athleticism, your mentality.

1:15:23But was there anybody that you tried to like kind of channel or take pieces of their game and bring them to yours when you were growing up? Great question. Shaquille O 'Neal is a mixture of Patrick Ewing. Okay. David Robinson. Yeah. And Magic Johnson. Nice. You know, Kenny Smith said this the other day. He said, the reason why the league is the way it is because everybody's a product of their environment. When I was really starting to dominate, all the other centers would get scared and try to step out and shoot jumpers. So as I'm fading out, now you got the Dierks and you got the KGs and you got the Tim Duncans.

1:16:00They were phenomenal post players, but they also shot a lot of jumpers. So now the kids are watching them. Like when I was coming up, it was fucking jump hooks and drop steps and dunks. That's because I saw Mr. Patrick Ewing doing it. You want to hear a funny story about Patrick Ewing? Please. I saw him the other day. Patrick Ewing. I actually saw him the other day. He's like, man, we used to have some battles here. I was like, bro, you were my idol coming to high school. His eyes got wide. He's like, for real? You didn't fucking know that you were my idol in high school? You guys had so many battles.

1:16:30That's why. He was like, for real. I was like, Pat, I wore 33. I wore the fucking knee pads. That's because you did it. Like he had no idea. That's crazy. So I grew up watching those guys. And then, you know, I remember watching Dave Robson run the fucking floor. run and catch that alley-oop. So I went to my friend Joe Cavalier. I was like, we're going to try this play in high school where when the guy leans, I'm going to fucking spin and you throw it up. And we did that in high school and college. And then Magic Johnson was a big guy that can handle the ball and make fast-shee plays. So those were the three guys that I tried to pattern myself after.

1:17:06And then there's one more guy, Ronnie Cykley. When he was in college, he used to dunk and get his knees up. Oh, that's where we got the Shaq logo. Exactly. Exactly. So I did that one time in the game in high school, playing against some little kids, and the whole gym got terrified. I was like, holy shit. I figured something out. So every time I dunk, every time I dunk, I try to get my knees up, which makes you look powerful, makes you look like you're trying to tear the rim down. So, you know, it's crazy. Nobody's ever asked me a question, but that's who I pattern my game up. Man, I love it. I love it.

1:17:41Who would have knew Patrick Chewing, baby? Yes. Legend. This is our last segment, Shaq. We're going to rapid fire some questions at you. Feel free. You don't got to answer it. It's called We Gotta Ask. Let's do it. Do you remember your first dunk? Yes. How old were you? 16. Everybody remembers their first one. I was having a game. Remember I told you Magic Johnson was one of my guys? This game, I'm on my Magic Johnson shit. Tallest guy on the other team is six foot. So I'm going to get it, take off the glass, just lay it up. So I got 40 by the end of three. One time I cross a dude up and I finger roll it and I miss.

1:18:20And my father's in his, like, my father was the guy that's never impressed. Like, he would be the guy that if I had 40 and missed 10 free throws, you should have had 50, pussy. So, like, I'm doing all this shit in the game trying to impress him. He's not smiling. So I cross a dude up, A.I. I said, ha, finger roll and miss. He walks on the court and his army fatigues, timeout. Like, we're in the middle of the game. Call a timeout. So I call a timeout and say, come outside. So I go outside. There's no way this is real. Hold on, this is real. I promise you this is real. So we go outside the gym. Little gym.

1:18:53Because, you know, my graduating class was 39, but from 9 to 12 was only 200 kids. Small gym, one side of the bleach. You said, go outside. Say, yo, man, what the fuck you doing? So, you know, I'm all American, cool. He's like, man, I'm just working on my magic. And before I can say Johnson, whap. fuck Roger Johnson beat Shaquille O 'Neal and start dunking that shit I'm tired of watching this shit so now and then again remember I told you about emotions it hurt but I can't go in the gym crying right yeah but everybody like all my boys already knew what the fuck saw it on your face yeah so now I go in the gym and I'm looking at the coach and he calling the play I'm like fuck that play give me the ball so he got me the ball and I'm and now he's celebrating That's what the fuck I'm talking about.

1:19:43Kill that little motherfucker. That's my son. Yeah, yeah, yeah. You got a motherfucker 6 '2". So after that, I was like, okay. So that was 16 my junior year, and I was 6 '11". Not that I couldn't dunk. One time I tried to dunk in a game and I missed at 6 '11". So I kind of, you know, everybody was laughing, so I kind of just, you know, shied away from him. But he took me outside, bro, and touched me up, and I've been dunking ever since. Bro, can you imagine the guy that was on the receiving end of this on the other team? He's just like, God damn it, Mr. O 'Neal. Why did you fire him up like this?

1:20:19My dad was 6 '8", drill sergeant, PT every morning. Oh, fuck, I was solid. Everybody, the whispers throughout the entire community are just like, hey, listen, if you're playing Shaq, if his dad takes him outside in the middle of the game, just quit. Throw the towel. Get off the court. throw the towel. It's going to get ugly. It was like a, but, but it was like a smack that was heard throughout the gym. Cause before I left, it was cheerleaders. As soon as I walked in, everybody was like eggshells. That is such a wild story. And I'm looking at everybody and the coach is like, okay, we're going to run.

1:20:59I was like, we're not running that plane. Give me the fucking ball, man. That's fucking legendary. You, uh, do you gotta, a favorite dunk of all time? My favorite dunk of all time was two of them. And I actually just seen this dude the other day, Chris Dudley, and he left. Oh, yeah. I was like, are you trying to fight or are you trying to give me a hug? He started laughing. I started out getting a hug. Nice. I took it as a sign of respect when you didn't double me. So I'm back, and I don't even know who was on me. Like, you know, that switch, I'm like, I know this ain't fucking Chris Dudley. So I take one little dribble to double still.

1:21:32Like, I tell you, you know, he's trying to, So I'm like, I take one dribble. I'm like, the fuck? I take two dribbles. I even carry on the second. I was like, oh, these motherfuckers not coming? Now I got to take that and then just drop step and then boom. And like he was all on me and I was like, fuck off me. And then my second favorite dunk was game seven. Portland's kicking ass. They are kicking ass. So we come to the timeout on the fourth quarter and Phil Jackson, You know what I told you used to, like, mind, play with your minds? Mm-hmm. All right, guys. Great year. They're kicking your ass.

1:22:08I'll see you next year. So now we're like, Kobe's pissed. He said it. I'm pissed. He said it. I'm like, man, fuck that. Let's go on a little run. Legendary quote, man. Kobe's in Kobe mode. He's getting to the hole. And two people, three people, he don't care. He knows he has to score. And I'm telling him the whole time, hey, man, that fucking lob is open. All right, all right. Hey, man, that lob is open. So we make kind of eye contact. I won't say he winked at me, but he looked at me, and he crosses Scotty up at the top of the key. You know what? I'm not going to even talk about the clip. Here it is right here.

1:22:39Yeah! Enter Brandon. Don't you fuck that up. Yeah, don't you fuck that up. Better be on your shit, Brandon. Yes. But that was like the backdoor oop, the spin off of him, and they go, man, iconic. No, no. That was the one where he crossed Scotty up, and he got in the middle lane, and he threw the motherfucker up too high, and I had to go get it. Here it goes. Oh, okay, Brandon. Okay. Right there. Throw it up, Kobe. Throw it up, Kobe.

1:23:06Yeah, Kobe. Good pass. Yes, sir. That one right there. That place is fucking rocking. Oh, my God. Because I kept telling. I was like, yo, man, the lob is there. He was like, because listen, one thing about Kobe, when Kobe gets in killer mode, don't fucking talk to him. Like, he's not trying to hit nothing. Like, he knows he's in attack mode. He's going to score first. I'm like, yo, man, that lob is there. alright yo Cole the lob is there alright motherfucker I said the lob is there alright and then like he at the top of the key and he gives me one of those things right there and I'm like huh is this it and then when he threw it up the motherfucker threw it up too high I had to fucking go I was like oh and then and then you know as you see I didn't catch it like I just I said to myself I said to myself if I get my hands on just fucking punch it through play it again Brandon I mean because it wasn't really a clean catch Hurry up, Brandon.

1:23:59Play it one more time, Brandon. He's not ready. He's not ready. Come on, Brandon. Look right here. See, he backs it right there. And right there, he said, okay, boy, yeah. See that hand? That's the same one. He threw it. And I just fucking slapped it. And I just slapped it through. That's fucking electric. Talk. The whole crowd. That place is going apeshit. Oh, my gosh. You watch that shit all day, man. I had to slap it through. Spiked it. Oh, man. Absolutely legendary. Man, that's fucking electric. Which was worse, eating the hot chip on Inside the NBA or eating Da Bomb on Hot Ones? The hot chip on T &D.

1:24:41I thought I was going to die. That fucking, the hot chip, that was the craziest experience I've ever been through. That ruined me for the next three days. Yeah, that was the worst experience ever. It ruined me for three days straight. I was shitting out fire. It was ridiculous. I ate it and it wasn't that hot. But because it was an old dry chip, I was like, let me drink some water. That water activated. It activated it? It activated to where my throat started closing. So I'm a type of like I go to the top. I'm like, I know I'm not about to die on TNT. I was like, so then I had to drink more water.

1:25:22That shit just kept getting hot. But then I remember, and this is how I got my icy hot deal. One day I had a fucking thigh bruise and the trainer rubbed icy hot on it. And that shit rolls up to the boys. Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. My shit got so fucking hot. Oh, no. So I'm in the shower one day like, ah. And the Spanish guy was like, senor, senor, milk. I was like, what? You got milk. I was like, what the fuck you mean milk? I was like, bro, you playing with me? He's like, no, papi. We eat a lot of spicy foods. Yeah, he was like, no, papi. We eat spicy foods. and the capsaicin, you put milk on it. So I said, here,$100, go get me milk.

1:25:57So I'm in the shower, pouring milk on my mouth, and everybody worked. I said, so now that I'm like, oh, I need some water. I told them, hey, go get me some milk. So I'm in the back drink. He was like, why are you drinking milk? I was like, because it stops the capsaicin. Oh, my God. That shit was so hot. I went ice cream, but like I said, though, it ruined me for the next three days. Oh, ice cream works too? I think it's any dairy, yeah. Okay. I think it's fat. Fat, for some reason, it messes with the capsaicin. Got it. What do you think of the new Magic jerseys? I haven't seen them. Brandon, good time to shine.

1:26:32Brought back the pinstripes. I like the one on the right. Oh, the one on the right with that 32 would have been fucking nice. The black pinstripe. I likes it. Yeah, it's good. Zavagina boys. Yeah, those are my favorite brothers since the Kelsey brothers. Zavagina boys. Yes. Hold on. I just made an idea for you guys to do a reality show. Okay. A million dollars prize, the best brothers in the world. Be the Wagner boys, you, the Mannings, the twins that play for Detroit and Houston. Be like five teams and y 'all just go through three crazy obstacle courses. If you do the show, I want an executive producer.

1:27:12Okay. I like, listen, I'm in. That's a great fucking show. They don't want to see me and Jason in on this one. I promise you that. I know. I know that. That's what I'm saying. It was a great show. I'm in on that. What was your welcome to the NBA moment? My welcome to the NBA moment, my first one, because I'm a crazy kid. First time I felt scared. So Chicago had an old stadium, and you got to walk up the stairs. And when you walk up the stairs, they play that old Bulls music. That fucking laser show come on, and there he is, God. And there he is. The same God that was on your poster in high school and college.

1:27:51and he's there. He acknowledges you, but he gives you that look like, motherfucker, I'm about to kill you. Because I see him, I'm like, what's up, motherfucker? I'm like, oh, shit. That's the first time I got. And then you go for a shot and he's right there. He comes down, he doesn't move. I'm like, this motherfucker's perfect. But the moment that changed it was, even though I'm terrified, I'm never going to show you I'm terrified. So he came off a screen one time and he shot. I didn't block it, but I was right there. I was like, aha, he's human.

1:28:27So after that, I was okay. But the first time going to play against Jordan, I was freaking, my heart was going, and then I was like, you know what? He's Mike, but I have to play well. I didn't do bad and do great, but I think I held my own. But I was terrified out there. I can only imagine what it was like. Shaking. That's awesome, man. Shaq, thank you for the stories, big dog. Thank you for your time. Yep. Tell your families I said hello, and I'll definitely see you guys again. You know it, man. You know it. I can't wait to watch these first two of these finals. Hold on. I can't wait to watch Power Moves out now on Netflix, everybody.

1:29:02I got to show you guys something. Two seconds. Take your time. I got to tell you, Shaq, I don't even need to see the edit. This is probably one of the best episodes we've ever done. We didn't do nothing. Hey!

1:29:23That's my favorite song in the world, brother. I love it. You didn't know it. Just got that song back, too. Hell yeah. Just bought all our music back, so it finally hurts, too, man. I appreciate that, dog. I love you guys. Love you, big dog. Everybody, the diesel. Well, that was fucking electric. Oh, baby. Some people just know how to tell a fucking story and just be themselves. Goddamn, man. I was over here just fucking relishing in that, man. The diesel, man. Incredible. Hopefully you guys enjoyed this one, man. All right, and that wraps up another episode of New Heights. Next week, Chiefs fans, we've got a great guest for you.

1:30:02That's right. Steve Spagnola is coming on. That's right. We're getting the old ball coach, defensive coordinator, one of the best to ever do it. So make sure you're subscribed on YouTube to the New Heights channel and follow New Heights on the Wondery app or wherever you get your podcasts. You can listen to new episodes of New Heights early and ad-free right now by joining Wondery Plus in the Wondery app or on Apple Podcasts. That's right. Once again, New Heights, a Wondery show produced by Wavesports and Entertainment and brought to you by Audible. Follow the show on all social media at New Heights Show with one S.

1:30:36For all you 92 percenters, appreciate you guys tuning in. Hopefully you guys enjoyed the shaktest as much as we did. And thanks to our production and crew for always making us look good. We love you guys. And we'll see you guys next week with my guy Spags.

1:30:58I got to leave this on to the uploads, right? You know it. That's Riverside. You know the rules. Thank you so much. Love you guys. Shaq, that was amazing, man. Thank you so much for the time. That was so fun. You actually did a great job. I was saying to myself, I was saying to myself, if you fuck up one time, One more time, you're going to be working at fucking Doritos, taste-testing spicy Doritos. But you know what? You did a good job. No, no, yeah. You did a good job. All right, guys. Love you.