Shaquille O’Neal Draws Brutal Parallels between Joel Embiid and ‘Homeless Guy Getting Bullied’

On the latest segment of ‘The Big Podcast,’ Shaquille O’Neal openly ridiculed 76ers star Joel Embiid without pulling any punches.

Shaquille O’Neal Draws Brutal Parallels between Joel Embiid and ‘Homeless Guy Getting Bullied’

Joel Embiid and Shaquille O'Neal (Image via FirstSportz)

Philadelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid endured one of the toughest seasons of his career in 2024–25. Plagued by injuries, he appeared in fewer than 20 games, drawing heavy criticism from around the NBA. Among the loudest voices was legend Shaquille O’Neal, who didn’t hold back in ridiculing the Sixers’ centerpiece.

Zach Randolph, a former Memphis Grizzlies standout, recently joined him on an episode of his podcast, “The Big Pod.” Joel Embiid was mentioned when discussing which players today could have competed with O’Neal in his day. According to O’Neal, Embiid would not have survived in the NBA at that time. He also made a brutal parallel regarding Embiid.

I came at him one day, and his response was, ‘Guys don’t play like that no more.’ I’m like, motherf****, what? The f*** you talking about? Like, bro, go inside. Punish. I’m like, trying to bully a motherf**** like, give me your lunch. ‘I would, but I’m homeless.’

Shaquille O’Neal said

O’Neal disagreed with Randolph’s assertion that Embiid’s skills would have allowed him to flourish in earlier times. He had an issue with Embiid telling him, “Guys don’t play like that no more,” because he had earlier pushed him to play harder from the post.

O’Neal, who built a Hall of Fame career out of becoming an imposing presence in the paint, was offended by that remark. It simply doesn’t make sense to him when he watches someone like Embiid, who is big enough to dominate down low but doesn’t.

In actuality, O’Neal may be discussing more than simply Embiid. When it comes to post up possessions per game, Embiid has been behind only Nikola Jokic over the last three seasons. Since 2022–2023, he has averaged 4.5, 5.8, and 4.6.

That represents a decline from the early days of tracking, when Marc Gasol topped the league in 2015–16 with 7.2 post-ups per game. In short, O’Neal wants big men to play like they used to back in the day, something that is declining in today’s game.

Another former NBA player criticized Joel Embiid for his mentality in the sport

During an appearance on The Mike Missanelli Show, former NBA player and Shaquille O’Neal’s close friend, Charles Barkley, disclosed that approximately five years ago, he attended a training session with Philadelphia 76ers’ Billy Cunningham.

Joel Embiid
Joel Embiid (Credits: NBA/X)

During team drills, Cunningham had a bad encounter with 76ers center Joel Embiid. Barkley used his story to show how Embiid’s lack of conditioning could make his injury issues worse.

This is the first day of training camp. Joel goes and sits down. The other guys scrimmage for an hour and a half. Billy says, ‘We gotta go.’ I said, ‘Why, Billy?’ He says, ‘The best player? When they sit down instead of scrimmaging, this team is never going to be successful.’ Billy was pissed.

Charles Barkley stated

Embiid has nevertheless shown himself over time. The 76ers made it to the playoffs each year from 2017 to 2024. The seven-time All-Star played in more than fifty matches per season throughout that span, averaging over 20 points and 10 rebounds. To help the 76ers and his teammates succeed in the upcoming season, he must journey back in time once more.

The Sixers have opted to stick with Joel Embiid despite injury concerns

Due to Joel Embiid’s health issues, there have been several trade rumors. According to NBA insider Marc Stein’s report on Thursday, the 76ers have no plans to trade Embiid. “They’re willing to give the big man star a chance to run it back with Tyrese Maxey and Paul George,” Stein said. This puts all the spotlight back on the Sixers’ ‘Big 3’

Last season, injuries prevented the 76ers’ top three players from playing at their full potential. Paul George was also restricted due to a knee condition, in addition to Embiid (who played just 19 games). After the All-Star break, the team shut him down after he made 41 appearances. After 52 games, Tyrese Maxey was also shut down by the 76ers.

Now, with an important offseason ahead of them, the 76ers have a lot of work cut out to bring their stars to proper fitness. Keeping all three will be the main task for the 76ers’ medical department.

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