Shaq Disrespects Late Kobe Bryant During On-Air Spat With Charles Barkley: ‘I Could Win Four Championships by Myself’

With 2021 NBA MVP Nikola Jokić on the verge of being swept out of the playoffs, TNT’s Charles Barkley can’t understand how a “superstar” could possibly lose a series without winning at least one game.

“One stat I’m proud of, I never got swept out of a four-game series. NEVER,” Barkley said Sunday night on TNT’s Inside the NBA. “You can’t tell me you’re a great player if you can’t win one out of four games, I just don’t believe that.”

Never getting swept in a series might be the playoff stat Barkley is most proud of, but that’s because he failed to win a championship. Barkley’s assertion came while sitting across the table from Shaquille O’Neal, who won four titles during his NBA career, but he was also swept out of the playoffs six times.

Shaq getting swept six times is a shocking stat for a player who was the most dominant player in the postseason for three straight years. Trying to defend himself, Shaq quickly threw his teammates under the bus telling Chuck, “I can’t do it by myself.”

“You can win one game by yourself,” Barkley said.

“I could win four championships by myself,” Shaq fired back.

Barkley reminded Shaq of the superstars he played with for those titles, Dwyane Wade and the late Kobe Bryant. “I was the Finals MVP, STOP IT!” Shaq argued.

O’Neal won four titles during his NBA career, and was named the Finals MVP for the three championship rings he earned alongside Kobe in Los Angeles. Wade won Finals MVP for Shaq’s only title with the Miami Heat.

But during Shaq’s three championships in Los Angeles, Kobe was already establishing himself as an elite player in the NBA. Shaq claiming, “I could win four championships by myself,” completely disregards the contributions Wade and Kobe made in those title runs.

Despite their greatness as one of the best duos in NBA history, Shaq and Kobe clashed in Los Angeles, ultimately parting ways while still having prime years left in their careers. When Kobe tragically died last year in a helicopter crash, Shaq was extremely complimentary of his former teammate. But hearing Shaq Sunday night, seemingly forgetting that Kobe was an integral part of his NBA career, was a glimmer into their feud from decades ago.

Watch above via TNT