“He’s (Chet Holmgren) a great role player. He’s a Horace Grant or Toni Kukoc, not taking away. But he’s not a Big 3, stop it.” Stinging words from Shaquille O’Neal as he was not impressed after the Thunder lost game 1 of the NBA finals. Being a center and dominating both sides of the paint for years, the Lakers legend expects the same from others. But the 23-year-old failed to do so in Game 1, which led Shaq to produce his rant on the live broadcast.

“I did not expect this. I thought it should’ve been a blowout,” Shaq said on NBA TV, visibly stunned by OKC’s collapse. “Chet had a horrible game. Two for nine for six points. But listen, Indiana, they definitely stole one. And nobody expected this.” Holmgren’s stat line—6 points, 6 rebounds, 2-of-9 shooting—justified the response from the 4x NBA champion. But the course correction was immediate in game 2.

He was the game’s leading scorer with nine points on 4-of-5 shooting as Oklahoma City led by six points after one quarter. But his performance with 30 blocks and 25 shots from beyond the arc in the playoffs made him part of an elite list. 3 players before this season did it: Draymond Green, Rasheed Wallace, and Al Horford. Myles Turner and Chet Holmgren added their names to this. However, another thing of note is that the Thunder star is the youngest player in NBA history to do it.

So far, it has been a hot and cold performance in the playoffs from the Gonzaga alum. He had two 20-point+ games in the Grizzlies series, none in the Nuggets series, as he was put to the test against Nikola Jokić’s matchup. He then had three in the Timberwolves series, and has started with a 6-point game against the Pacers in Game 1. His average before game 2 was 15.8 points, 8.4 rebounds, and 1.9 blocks in 17 games of the 2025 playoffs so far. That’s why Shaq was not impressed with the Thunder star.

Previous Shaquille O’Neal admission where he put himself above Chet Holmgren

The 7-foot-1 Holmgren, who missed the entire 2022-23 season due to injury and missed a considerable even this season. Owing to his right iliac wing fracture in his hip, the regular season starts were limited to just 32 games. Just two months ago, Shaq boldly put himself ahead of Holmgren and Wembanyama, who are both extremely modern centers. They don’t rely on scoring in paint, as they can shoot quick threes. That’s why O’Neal expressed, “No, and I hate putting myself forward in time, but I will make both them motherf—ers quit.”

The rant did not stop there, “Back his a– and elbow right into his motherf—ing mouth. You know what they’re going to do all night? Shoot the motherf—ing three.” It’s not the first time that Shaquille O’Neal expressed his displeasure over the Bigs relying on shooting jumpers beyond the arc. Unlike the Lakers legend, who dominated the paint and broke some boards in his time. “I’ll make those motherf—ers quit. To me, any guy that’s 7-foot-4, 7-foot-5 that shoots jumpers, they don’t want that funk.”

Even in Game 2, Chet Holmgren did not dominate in scoring, as MVP, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander dominated the scoring with his 34 points night. But when others struggled to score in the first quarter, it was Holmgren who made sure that his team did not lag behind. Now, the series is tied 1-1, and Holmgren would love to add more to his tally.