Day 16 of the never-ending Shaq-o-logy debate, and yes, ring culture is still the hot topic. It all started with Tracy McGrady’s jab at the obsession with championship rings, but now there’s a fascinating side story gaining steam. The conversation has shifted to whether Shaquille O’Neal truly brought that championship DNA with him—or just playoff credibility and Finals appearances. The truth? There was something magnetic about being on a prime Shaq-led squad. And apparently, even his own son can’t help but feel the pull of that legacy.

Shareef O’Neal was a newborn when his dad was winning his first three chips. He’s attached to the Lakers and his late uncle, Kobe Bryant. While he’d never swap out his Unc for anything, he knows what his dad brought to the team.

Speaking to Fashion Nova, Shareef answered three very standard questions from NBA lore – if he can take on Prime Shaq, which legendary squad he’d join, and his dream starting 5. While he remained firm that there’s no one who could beat his dad in his prime, he spurred a little debate in the comments while picking between the Lakers and their biggest rivals.

Responding to, “What team would you rather play for – 02 to 03 Lakers, or the 07 to 08 Celtics?” He responded, “I’m going to that Lakers team for sure.” While the Kevin Garnett-armed Celtics were tough, even they used to be rattled by the 7’1″ giant in Miami. Shareef’s choice is not all that surprising.

So when he was asked to name his starting 5 of all time, it wasn’t who he left out that was striking. “All time, at the point guard I’m going to go Magic Johnson. Shooting guard, I’ll go Kobe. Small forward, I’m going LeBron. Power forward I’m going to go KD. And then center, I’ll go my father.”

In the past, it would be a toss-up between Michael Jordan and Steph Curry. He’d never skip Kobe Bryant. He used to put Tim Duncan in as center. But now he squarely leaves out MJ and always has his dad in the center. It reflects the current atmosphere about how much Shaq was important in a squad.

Shaquille O’Neal’s son’s mindset is similar to Tracy McGrady

A lot can be said about the three-peating Lakers of the ’00s – whether it was Shaq’s squad and Kobe was the clutch, or if Shaquille O’Neal could win without the Black Mamba. We almost never imagine Shaq & Kobe not being the duo.

Yet Tracy McGrady made us picture him in Bryant’s place and it kicked off a whole other storm. “What defines greatness? Is it the championship?” McGrady said on First Take last month. “For me, we have too many talented players that come to this league that are championship worthy… Replace me with Kobe with Shaq; I don’t win a championship? You don’t think I can carry the Lakers to a championship? Like, I’ve never had the opportunity…”

That turned scary real fast. A lot of NBA legends weighed in on his comments. He had to clarify his misinterpreted statements about Bryant. “To go back to those comments, I never should have said replaced. I think replacing Kobe, I don’t want to say I’d be replacing Kobe… There’s no way in hell I would ever disrespect my brother like that.”

He further clarified, “The reason I said that is because Shaq, Kobe, Tim Duncan, were the only ones winning championships.”

That’s why Shareef could also pick between Tim Duncan who led the Spurs to five championships in that decade and his dad. He seemingly gets the perspective and can picture himself in the Shaq & Kobe Lakers same as McGrady. It’s just that being O’Neal’s son, his stance feels a lot different than T-Mac’s.