"There is no real Superman" - Dwight Howard mocks Shaquille O'Neal for accusing him of hijacking his nickname
Over the years, Dwight Howard and Shaquille O'Neal have traded words. While the pair never had an altercation on the court, Howard's dominance for the Orlando Magic and his use of the Superman cape during a dunk contest seemed to spark a rivalry.
Since then, O'Neal has targeted Howard. During a recent episode of D12's Above the Rim podcast, he discussed the situation, explaining that the Superman cape had nothing to do with Shaq.
Throughout his career, 'Shaq Diesel' wore Superman shirts and even had the DC icon's symbol tattooed on his arm. When he retired in 2011, Shaq handed out shirts that said, "The Real Superman." This appeared to be shot at Howard.
After the 2020 champion argued that O'Neal doesn't own the Superman nickname, the Hall of Famer responded with trademark candor.
"U can't call yourself me and have one ring that u was a role player in getting. It's only one baby. And I said it."
Howard responded twice to Shaq's quip, once from the podcast's account and once from his account:
"Who blocks someone over a nickname owned by Warner Brothers. There is no REAL Superman. It sounds petty."
"Why do I have to ask him, not Warner Brothers?" - Dwight Howard jabs back at Shaquille O'Neal during podcast
The way Dwight Howard sees things, O'Neal has no reason to be mad at him for using the Superman logo at the dunk contest. Despite that, Shaq insists on contesting Howard's usage of the moniker.
In his autobiography, O'Neal wrote that Howard's use of the logo doesn't work for him. In addition, LeBron James, who played alongside O'Neal in Cleveland, pointed to Howard's use of the logo as a source of frustration for the Hall of Famer.
While Howard didn't pick the nickname, the fact that he used it doesn't sit right with O'Neal. As Howard explained on his podcast:
"It (the beef) came from what? ... What was I doing? Why do I have to ask him, not Warner Brothers? Warner Brothers, they own the f*****g rights to d**n Superman."
As Howard noted, his chosen nickname is Deebo, not Superman. Fans gave him the Superman moniker. Despite that, after O'Neal blocked Howard's phone number, it seems the two won't squash their beef any time soon.