Barring the wheels completely falling off down the stretch, the Detroit Pistons will put together one of the more surprising turnarounds in NBA history and secure a playoff spot to break a long postseason drought. After taking care of the Washington Wizards on Wednesday night, the surging team now finds itself tied for the No. 4 spot in the Eastern Conference with the Indiana Pacers and Milwaukee Bucks. It may now be officially time for the national media to start mentioning Detroit when discussing the league and Shaquille O'Neal broke the ice on the NBA on TNT.
"He's a great player, I like the way he's playing," O'Neal said of Cade Cunningham. "I like what Chauncey is doing, those guys play hard."
So close.
O'Neal was then helpfully informed by his on-air colleges that former Pistons great Chancey Billups coaches the Portland Trail Blazers and it's J.B. Bickerstaff patrolling the bench in Detroit.
Shaq on the Detroit Pistons
— Pistons Talk (@Pistons__Talk) March 12, 2025
“I like what Chauncey is doing, first of all I don’t watch Detroit how bout that”
Via @NBAonTNT pic.twitter.com/GAps1Scg7r
But the joke was on Candace Parker, Adam Lefkoe and Vince Carter because Shaq has a perfectly understandable explanation.
"First of all, I don't watch Detroit, how about that?" O'Neal said.
Checkmate.
You may be wondering why Shaq, one of the foremost NBA voices in the world, wouldn't watch one of the league's top-10 teams. But what you should be wondering is why he would bother watching them when he could just say stuff like this and improve the show.
Work smarter, not harder.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Shaq Doesn't Know Who Coaches Pistons or Ever Watch Them But Likes What They're Doing.
