{"id":17911,"date":"2024-06-10T21:50:28","date_gmt":"2024-06-10T16:20:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.businessupturn.com\/sports\/?p=445753"},"modified":"2024-06-10T21:50:28","modified_gmt":"2024-06-10T16:20:28","slug":"what-did-shaquille-oneal-say-to-jaylen-brown","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.businessupturn.com\/sports\/nba\/what-did-shaquille-oneal-say-to-jaylen-brown\/","title":{"rendered":"What did Shaquille O\u2019Neal say to Jaylen Brown?"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Much has been made about Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum in recent weeks, with both stars seamlessly alternating between the roles of Batman and Robin in the Celtics\u2019 quest for the NBA Finals.<\/p>\n

Recently, Brown has been the higher-volume scorer, averaging 27.0 points compared to Tatum\u2019s 25.8 over the past two rounds. This surge has captivated many on NBA Twitter, prompting some to declare Brown the best player in Boston green. Recency bias is a powerful elixir, and Brown\u2019s exploits have sparked fervent debates among fans.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

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Shaquille O\u2019Neal\u2019s Advice to Jaylen Brown<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Following the Celtics\u2019 Game 2 win over the Mavericks, Brown found himself sharing the spotlight with a familiar face: former Boston \u201cgreat\u201d and Inside the NBA co-host, Shaquille O\u2019Neal. Shaq, who knows a thing or two about sharing the spotlight with superstars, having done so with Kobe Bryant in Los Angeles and Dwyane Wade in Miami, offered Brown some guidance.<\/p>\n

O\u2019Neal\u2019s advice came wrapped in his trademark mystique. \u201cJaylen, I don\u2019t have a question. But I\u2019m going to give you some G-14 classification information, because this will be the last time you see me. It\u2019s a riddle; do not get fixated on useless titles. Do what you gotta do. Doesn\u2019t matter who\u2019s who, or they say who\u2019s what. It ain\u2019t time for all that right now. Do what you gotta do and get it done,\u201d O\u2019Neal counseled.<\/p>\n

The messaging didn\u2019t immediately resonate with Brown, prompting co-host Matt Winer to offer Brown a chance to seek clarification. Shaq elaborated, drawing from his experience with Bryant, and emphasized the importance of ignoring the noise and focusing on winning.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019re trying to separate you and your guy [Jayson Tatum] by saying who\u2019s better,\u201d O\u2019Neal added. \u201cDon\u2019t worry about useless titles, it don\u2019t matter who the man is. Kobe\u2019s the man, Shaq\u2019s the man, it don\u2019t matter. I\u2019m getting my 40, Kobe\u2019s getting his 39, let\u2019s go win a championship.\u201d<\/p>\n

O\u2019Neal\u2019s comments didn\u2019t arise in isolation. Mavericks head coach Jason Kidd had recently declared Brown as Boston\u2019s best player before Game 2, a statement that bemused some and irritated others within the Boston camp. However, Kidd\u2019s endorsement did little to derail the Celtics.<\/p>\n

Fueled by Brown, Tatum, Jrue Holiday, and Derrick White, Boston clinched a 105-98 victory, moving closer to NBA immortality. Brown delivered with 21 points, seven assists, and four rebounds on 8-of-15 shooting, while Tatum narrowly missed a triple-double.<\/p>\n

As the Celtics march towards the championship, the debate over who is the better player\u2014Brown or Tatum\u2014continues to rage. Yet, Shaq\u2019s wisdom underscores a crucial truth: the titles and labels are irrelevant. What matters is the collective effort to secure victory. Brown and Tatum\u2019s ability to dovetail seamlessly is what makes the Celtics a formidable force. In the end, their synergy could lead Boston to NBA glory, regardless of who dons the Batman cape or the Robin mask.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Shaquille O\u2019Neal and Kobe Bryant playoff stats<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Shaquille O\u2019Neal\u00a0<\/strong><\/td>\nPer Game<\/strong><\/td>\nKobe Bryant<\/b><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
119<\/td>\nGames played<\/td>\n119<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
27.7<\/td>\nPoints<\/td>\n22.6<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
13.4<\/td>\nRebounds<\/td>\n4.8<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
3.0<\/td>\nAssists<\/td>\n4.4<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
0.5<\/td>\nSteals<\/td>\n1.4<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
2.5<\/td>\nBlocks<\/td>\n0.7<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
2.9<\/td>\nTurnovers<\/td>\n2.7<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
41.0<\/td>\nMinutes<\/td>\n38.3<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
55.6<\/td>\nField goal %<\/td>\n43.4<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
0.0<\/td>\n3-point %<\/td>\n32.3<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
52.1<\/td>\nFree throw %<\/td>\n79.2<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n
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Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum\u00a0playoff stats<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Jaylen Brown<\/strong><\/td>\nPer Game<\/strong><\/td>\nJayson Tatum<\/b><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
24.6<\/td>\nPoints<\/td>\n24.9<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
6.0<\/td>\nRebounds<\/td>\n10.3<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
2.9<\/td>\nAssists<\/td>\n6.3<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
1.3<\/td>\nSteals<\/td>\n1.0<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
0.7<\/td>\nBlocks<\/td>\n0.7<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
2.8<\/td>\nTurnovers<\/td>\n2.7<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
37.1<\/td>\nMinutes<\/td>\n40.9<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
54.3<\/td>\nField goal %<\/td>\n42.6<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
35.6<\/td>\n3-point %<\/td>\n28.9<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
63.6<\/td>\nFree throw %<\/td>\n83.9<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Did Shaquille O\u2019Neal\u00a0play for the Celtics?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Yes, Shaquille O\u2019Neal did indeed play for the Celtics, spending his final season in the league in Beantown. As a 38-year-old in his 18th NBA season, O\u2019Neal managed to be fairly effective despite the limitations of age and injuries. He played 37 games for the franchise, averaging 9.2 points and 4.8 rebounds in just 20.3 minutes per game.<\/p>\n

O\u2019Neal\u2019s veteran presence and experience provided a boost to the Celtics, even though his time on the court was limited. His contributions went beyond the stat sheet, as he brought a wealth of knowledge and championship experience to a team with aspirations of adding another title to its storied history.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Much has been made about Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum in recent weeks, with both stars seamlessly alternating between the\u2026<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":294,"featured_media":38653,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[3827,3134,2480,827,826,2855],"class_list":["post-17911","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nba","tag-celtics","tag-jaylen-brown","tag-jayson-tatum","tag-kobe-bryant","tag-nba","tag-shaquille-oneal"],"reading_time":"4 min read","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.businessupturn.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17911","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.businessupturn.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.businessupturn.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.businessupturn.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/294"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.businessupturn.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=17911"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.businessupturn.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17911\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.businessupturn.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/38653"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.businessupturn.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=17911"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.businessupturn.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=17911"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.businessupturn.com\/sports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=17911"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}