"Superman, my a**": Shaquille O'Neal's disdain for Dwight Howard once took center stage during an All-Star weekend where he didn't even play
NBA legend Shaquille O’Neal has had a long-standing feud with former Orlando Magic superstar center Dwight Howard.
O’Neal has regularly criticized Howard throughout his career for being overrated and lacking motivation to be great. He has also taken a particular issue with Howard adopting one of his favorite nicknames: Superman.
Howard famously donned a Superman costume during his 2008 NBA Slam Dunk Contest victory, which bothered the big man. O’Neal then never let Howard live it down, including in 2010 when he re-ignited their feud.
In his book “Shaq Uncut: My Story,” O’Neal recounted a time that he publicly called out Howard following a game between his Cleveland Cavaliers and Howard’s Orlando Magic. The game, which took place on Feb. 11, 2010, was right before the 2010 All-Star break.
Howard and the Magic were double-teaming O’Neal rather than Howard guarding him straight up, so O’Neal let Howard hear about it. According to the big man, Howard then took his bait, leading to the story getting covered by the national media throughout the All-Star weekend. This came despite O’Neal not even being named an All-Star that year:
“He’s a little thin-skinned, so I tweaked him,” O’Neal said.
“We played Orlando right before the All-Star break, and they were fronting me and backing me. So, I decided to stir up a little controversy. I started saying, ‘Superman, my a**. When I was a young fella, I played all the great centers straight up — by myself. If you want respect, play me straight up.’
“So, Dwight takes the bait, and now all through All-Star weekend everyone is talking about Shaq and my comments about Dwight Howard, even though I’m not playing in the game.”
Watch: Shaquille O’Neal once blocked the ball with so much force that the arena lost power
Shaquille O’Neal on his relationship with Dwight Howard
Speaking of his relationship with Dwight Howard, Shaquille O’Neal later said that he didn’t have one. The big man said this was because he wasn’t a fan of Howard’s lack of originality. He then called on Howard to become his own person:
“Dwight Howard and I don’t really have a relationship,” O’Neal said.
“I don’t like people who lack originality. The whole Superman thing doesn’t work for me. … It’s kind of weird how he’s handled his career. He wants to be Superman. ... But that’s a mistake.
“He’s Dwight Howard. He’s not Shaq. Be your own man. Create your own brand.”
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