Shaquille O’Neal Accuses NBC Broadcaster of Sending Rude Messages, Reigniting Old Beef

Shaquille O’Neal is firing up the petty grill, looking for a friendly feud. It could be an aftereffect of ending his long-time beef with Dwight Howard or just Shaq being himself. The Big Aristotle earlier issued a hilarious warning against a television host and former NFL player on The Tonight Show. Now, he is after an NBC broadcaster with a pile of accusations.

Just recently, Big Aristotle stopped by at Studio 1A to talk about the Netflix docuseries Power Moves, which chronicles O’Neal and Allen Iverson’s efforts to revive Reebok by finding new stars who can elevate the brand. The series is executive produced by O’Neal and Authentic Studios. During his appearance, the Big Aristotle touched on a lot of stories along with the series.

And when the NBC anchor began to talk, O’Neal hilariously refused to respond. “I’m still not talking to you,” he said. Melvin wasn’t shocked but expressed his frustration as he said, “The beef continues after all these years?”  When the other host urged him to open up about what happened, the 4x NBA champ accused Melvin of sending rude emails.

O’Neal said this was after he had successfully defeated Melvin in basketball matchups, wrestling, and some other challenges. “Every time we see each other we have a competition and I beat him and he just gets mad. He sends me rude emails, threatening emails. He says he’s always gonna beat me up,” he jokingly said.

Even in today’s segment, he had a challenge for Melvin. The Big Aristotle offered Melvin a jaw dropping $1 million if he could complete eating a bowl full of SHAQ-A-LICIOUS XL Gummies. When Melvin turned it down, the retired NBA legend joked that there was a Bank of America right across the street where he could withdraw the cash if the broadcaster accepted the challenge.

The hilarious beefing continued when Melvin asked if Shaq would be bringing his 80s-era Reeboks back. O’Neal confirmed with another joke, “Yes we are, and you won’t get a pair.” Before Melvin, Shaq teased Strahan!

Why did Shaquille O’Neal warn Michael Strahan? 

The 4x NBA champion has made quite a few memorable appearances on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. During his latest visit to the studio, the former NBA star proudly claimed that he had been on the show 18 times. Impressive, right? That’s what Shaq thought! He even believed he might be the guest with the most appearances on the show.

But just a few days earlier, Michael Strahan had claimed the title of ‘No. 1 guy,’ having appeared on the show 21 times! Shaq seemed genuinely upset when he realized he wasn’t the top guest. The Big Aristotle is fiercely competitive and clearly, that fiery spirit hasn’t faded since retirement. 

In a hilarious tone segment on the show, the Los Angeles Lakers legend warned, “I’ve been on here 18 times, but I hear I’m not the number-one guy.” “Michael Strahan, I’m coming for you!” he warned as Fallon couldn’t stop laughing.

He even went on to challenge Andy Cohen, who has appeared on the show 20 times! “And guess what? Andy Cohen, I’m gonna beat your a–, too. Michael’s been on 24… Andy’s been on 20, and I’ve been on 18,” he noted.

So, to surpass Strahan, Shaq will have to outdo Cohen first. While he may have said it jokingly, it’s clear he wants to become the No. 1 guest. So watch out, he might be coming for Cohen and Strahan’s record!