After Hating on Dwight Howard for a Decade, Shaquille O’Neal’s 5 Word Compliment for Giannis Antetokounmpo Could Be Hard to Digest

Shaquille O’Neal was one of the most dominant centers the league has ever seen. While he’s fondly called ‘Shaq’ by most fans, he has a whole host of nicknames. To name a few, The Big Diesel, The Big Cloverleaf, The Big Aristotle.

But the nickname ‘Superman’ means a lot to him and he even has a ‘Superman’ tattoo. Considering Shaq’s strength and athleticism, the name makes sense. And he was borderline unstoppable and ruthless during his prime.

Now, after the Bucks’ playoff series win against the Bulls, Shaq has given the superman nickname to Giannis Antetokounmpo for his impressive performance. Shaq asked Kenny, “Who’s in the building?” and Kenny replied, “Oh I am not gonna say superman.” 

To which Shaq replied, “Oh he is! I gave it to him.” But Ernie wanted to be sure, “You would be ok calling him superman?” and Shaq replied, “Of course. I gave it to him. It’s all yours Giannis.” So Kenny yelled, “Superman is in the building!”

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But this might not be music to the ears of Dwight Howard. Shaquille O’Neal’s feud with Dwight Howard for the superman nickname is not something the fans would forget.

Shaquille O’Neal’s feud with Dwight Howard

During the twilight of Shaq’s career, there was competition for the superman nickname from Dwight Howard. Dwight tried to claim the nickname by wearing a superman costume during the 2008 slam dunk contest which he won. But Shaq wasn’t having it and has always maintained that there is only one superman in the NBA and that is him.

In 2016, Shaquille O’Neal shared a picture of him posterizing Dwight Howard on Facebook to reiterate that he is the superman. In 2021, during a hilarious discussion with his crew, Shaq said that Kenny and Chuck are the reason for his beef with Dwight because they called him superman during the 2008 dunk contest.

“There’s only one Superman to ever come through this league and you know his name. It’s me.”

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Shaq still seems to be bitter about Dwight Howard using the superman nickname. Recently, Shaquille O’Neal in his ‘The Big Podcast by SHAQ’ even said that Dwight tried to steal his identity.

Shaq doesn’t have a problem with giving away the superman nickname to Giannis. He believes that Giannis is worthy of the nickname. And this wasn’t the first time he has said this. In 2018 ‘The Big Shamrock’ said that the ‘Greek Freak’ is the new superman and that he will rise to the top soon.

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He said, “I’ve never given my name up before, but I’m giving it to him. He’s the new Superman. You heard it here first,”. And Giannis won the MVP award in the very next season.

The new superman Giannis and the Bucks take on the Boston Celtics in their next round of playoffs. And the fans can expect a great series from both teams.

The post After Hating on Dwight Howard for a Decade, Shaquille O’Neal’s 5 Word Compliment for Giannis Antetokounmpo Could Be Hard to Digest appeared first on EssentiallySports.