Shaquille O’Neal is one of the most dominant players in NBA history. His NBA on TNT co-analyst Candace Parker is one of the most dominant players in WNBA history. So TNT producers had the brilliant idea of pitting the two against each other in a simulated game of NBA 2K.
They put five Shaqs on one team and five Parkers on the other, and let them have at each other in a game to 21. And what came from it is honestly one of the most hilarious segments on a show that regularly produces a lot of laughs.
Team Diesel had a long day.
.@SHAQ had to walk off the set after getting dunked on by @Candace_Parker in this NBA2K simulation 😂
(via @NBAonTNT) pic.twitter.com/aHHwbbziG0
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) March 30, 2022
It started with Shaq bricking a three and went downhill from there for the big guy. Parker had simulated Shaq touching the ground on crossovers and was splashing stepback threes in the Big Aristotle’s face. But it wasn’t until virtual 6-foot-4 Parker dunked on the seven-footer’s avatar that real-life Shaq had to walk off set.
“He too little!”
This was just art. Everything about it. From the actual footage to Parker’s avatar “eating” after a dunk that put Shaq on his butt to her and Dwyane Wade’s instigating his annoyance afterwards. It obviously wouldn’t go like that in real life, and everybody knows it. But the fact Shaq still had the competitive desire to dominate in a video game simulation and it not go exactly how he’d imagine is just funny.
My guess is the game ratings were juiced a tad to make it more interesting. Because, number one, Shaq ain’t pulling up from three on a crossover. And we don’t even need to get into what Parker was doing. But it made for great TV, so I’m glad they did it.
