Two MVP contenders, two of the most fearsome players today, just faced off in a heated playoff showdown. It was OKC vs. Nuggets, but when it rolled, the cheers felt more like a Shai Gilgeous-Alexander vs. Nikola Jokic show. Sure, Aaron Gordon played the hero, stopping OKC’s momentum on Monday. Even though both had great points to claim, it was Jokic who truly stole the show. The Nuggets star delivered one of his best playoff performances ever, leaving everyone, fans and analysts, completely stunned. The 6-foot-11 superstar had a night so dominant that some are already tossing around comparisons to one of the all-time great big men, Shaquille O’Neal. And this time it’s Chandler Parsons.

With several teammates struggling against OKC’s top-ranked defense, Nikola Jokic put Denver on his back Monday night. He dropped 42 points on 15-for-29 shooting! It was the kind of night that earned Jokic a spot in conversations once reserved for Shaquille O’Neal. Back in his first Lakers playoff game, Shaq torched Portland for a postseason career-high 46 points. But while Shaq was dominant, his one major flaw was the free-throw line, and Chandler Parsons noticed. According to Parsons, that’s where Jokic could separate himself in this legendary big man conversation.

On the recent episode of Run It Back, Parsons set the stage by saying, “There’s a hole in Shaq’s game offensively, and that is shooting and that is free throws. But you can’t do that for Jokic because he is just gonna make them 80-85 % at the time and scores.” But he didn’t have any plan on stopping there. Parsons continued, “There’s a game plan for Shaq at least, and that’s foul. There ain’t a game plan for Jokic.” Lou Williams agreed, nodding along and adding a simple but telling, “Yeah.” They’ve got a valid point there. 

In the same video, Parsons brought up a very serious matter. For his career, Shaq shot just 52.7% from the stripe on 9.3 attempts per game in the regular season. Come playoff time, it dipped to 50.4% on 10.7 attempts, sparking the infamous “Hack-a-Shaq” strategy to kill his momentum.

Even the great Michael Jordan wasn’t bulletproof, with defenses crafting the ruthless “Jordan Rules” to slow him down. But Nikola Jokic is a different beast entirely. The three-time MVP boasts a career 82.4% free-throw percentage, making that old-school tactic completely useless. And after drilling that clutch three over Isaiah Hartenstein last night, it’s clear you can’t rattle this new-age hero.

Last night’s monster performance put Nikola Jokic in truly elite company. He joined a list reserved for the game’s absolute legends. Jokic now sits alongside Giannis Antetokounmpo, Shaquille O’Neal, and Wilt Chamberlain with a 40-20-5 playoff stat line. Wilt did it twice, Shaq followed in 2001 against the 76ers, and Giannis added his in 2022. And now, Jokic just matched Shaq’s feat at 24 years old, a mark few ever touch in their careers. 

And after watching that, Chandler Parsons couldn’t help but crown him, saying, “He’s probably the 2nd best center of all-time.” But do you know what Shaquille O’Neal thinks about Jokic?

Shaquille O Neal weighs in on Nikola Jokic and the battle for Big Man supremacy

Shaquille O’Neal has always treated himself like the unofficial bouncer for the “Greatest Centers Ever” club. Over the years, he’s kept the velvet rope tight, shutting out names like Bill Walton, Dwight Howard, and even the rising Victor Wembanyama. But Shaq’s not entirely old-school stubborn. He’s admitted that certain modern stars, like Giannis Antetokounmpo, could’ve dominated in any era.

The Big Diesel isn’t one to hand out compliments lightly, but he’s made it clear Jokic is one of those guys. When asked to name his personal top five centers of all time, Shaq rolled off the list: himself, Jokic, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Wilt Chamberlain, and Bill Russell. And honestly, if Shaquille O’Neal is putting you in that room, you’re in rare air.

Shaq’s always been about giving flowers to the greats who paved the way, but when it comes to Nikola Jokic, he’s seeing something different. “He’s already a champ, he has access to the building,” said O’Neal on the Big Podcast. “If he wants to get to a couple more floors, I’ll motivate him…The things that he’s doing, putting up these triple-doubles, actually have never been seen before. So I would definitely put him up there in the top five.”

Considering Shaq’s history of calling out modern big men, that kind of praise isn’t just casual talk. If Jokic snags another ring or MVP, keeping him out of the all-time greats conversation won’t just be tough. It’ll be impossible. At this point, position labels barely matter. The Joker’s building a resume even the old-school legends have to respect.