There’s no denying that the game of basketball has changed over the years. Gone is the gritty, physical game; replaced by a more cerebral, skill-oriented one. But legendary NBA and Lakers big men, Shaquille O’Neal and Dwight Howard, aren’t quite sold on how the evolution has impacted the league. Especially when it comes to big men.
In a surprising, emotional episode of The Big Podcast with Shaq, the former Lakers stars didn’t just reflect on the state of the big men—they also finally buried the hatchet in their long-standing feud. But not before diving into a heated MVP debate, with Joel Embiid, Nikola Jokic, and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander at the center of it all.
Dwight Howard wasted no time pinpointing what he thinks today’s bigs are missing. “Edge,” said the former Lakers star about what the bigs are missing.
“There’s no tough like, I look at Embiid. I feel like Embiid is supposed to put everybody in the basket every time until they stop him. Every time. I don’t see nobody beating him, I just don’t. I just think it needs some more, like, aggression from the bigs, from the big guys. But, again, the fans wanna see more up-and-down entertainment and shooting. So that’ll mess the game up,” said Howard.
It was more than praise—it was a challenge to the entire generation of big men. Howard, who once dominated with his physicality and presence in the paint, clearly sees Embiid as the last of a dying breed. Someone with the ability to dominate on sight, but not always the mindset to do so.
Feb 11, 2025; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid (21) drives against Toronto Raptors forward Scottie Barnes (4) in the fourth quarter at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Ross-Imagn Images
Shaq nodded in agreement but had a different take on who best embodies what the modern big man should be. And it’s none other than reigning MVP Nikola Jokic.
“You know what I like about Joker, though? He shuts both sides up. Like, I’ll say go in the post. Can’t guard him in the post. … And he put in big numbers. He’s he’s he’s like the new he’s like the new age center,” said Shaq. The big man’s admiration for Nikola Jokic is undeniable, but so is his indecision. While he was ready to hand last season’s MVP to Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, this year, he’s torn.
The debate between the two legends didn’t have a clear winner, but the respect was real. Howard leaned toward the raw dominance of Embiid, while the Big Diesel marveled at Jokic’s mind. And somewhere in the middle, Shai’s name still lingered as a worthy MVP. Adam Lefkoe, for his part, had an interesting proposition: add slots for co-MVPs.
And while it will continue to be a topic of debate for years to come, earlier in the podcast, the pair of legends finally resolved their decades-long conflict.
Dwight Howard and Shaq FINALLY squash their beef
We’ve all seen the clips. Shaquille O’Neal and Dwight Howard, despite having so much in common, seemed never to get along. It took years of Shaq badgering Howard on national TV, and Dwight wondering why the most dominant player in NBA history chose to go in on him so hard. But now, after the two finally put their feud to rest, we know why it even started in the first place. As it turns out, there wasn’t really a beef in the first place. If anything, it was a case of Shaq’s tactics to get Dwight motivated failing miserably. Here’s what happened.
Howard opened up about how those years of subtle (and not-so-subtle) criticism affected him. “The direct messages that we had, you were saying that, you’re not as great, you’re not great to hate, and stuff like that. So I just took that as, ‘Dang. You don’t like me, then.’,” he revealed.
One moment Howard recalled vividly was Shaq smashing his birthday cake on TV—an act that stung more than he ever let on. “I was like, ‘Hey, is he really pissed off at me?’… It’s just little things that I was like, ‘Dang, it’s big bro, but’…It’s like, ‘Man, I wanna go at him and do this, that, and the third.’ It’s just like, I didn’t have an understanding,” he further elaborated.
However, just because Howard didn’t get it didn’t mean Shaq had no reasoning behind his actions. Shaquille O’Neal thought getting him angry was the way to go because, as he told Dwight, “when you get mad, you dominate.” He then elaborated on how he’d done this before and what he was trying to do for Dwight.
February 15, 2020; Chicago, Illinois, USA; NBA great Shaquille O’Neal (left) shakes hands with Los Angeles Lakers player Dwight Howard (right) during NBA All Star Saturday Night at United Center. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
“I was playing the mentor role. I wanted you to be the mentee… I never always try to make it go personal, but I try to sprinkle some to get you mad… See, I think I think you took it a lot of personal. … You don’t think I told Kobe he wasn’t great? Yeah. You don’t think I told Penny he wasn’t great? You don’t think I told D-Wade he wasn’t great? This was my tactic to get them to play at another level,” said Shaq.
Howard’s response was vulnerable and real: Shaq didn’t have the bond with him that he had with others. And so, the tough love came across as just tough. The moment of clarity was decades in the making, but it was a powerful one—two dominant forces of their time, finally seeing each other clearly. And in that shared space of misunderstanding and mutual respect, the so-called “beef” quietly dissolved.
The MVP debate may have ended without a verdict, but the real win came off the court. Shaq and Dwight, once caught in a cloud of miscommunication, finally talked it out like brothers. As for who takes home the MVP trophy this season? That one’s still up in the air. But one thing’s clear—Embiid, Jokic, and Shai have the legends talking, and that says more than any stat sheet can.
The post “Nobody Beating” Joel Embiid Puts Shaquille O’Neal & Dwight Howard in Intense MVP Debate After Emotional Reconciliation appeared first on EssentiallySports.