It feels like all (many?) corners of the Internet are calling out Hall of Famer Shaquille O’Neal for a super-awkward interview with Utah Jazz star Donovan Mitchell in which Shaq told the guard to his face that he didn’t have what it takes to get to “the next level.”
Mitchell handled it really well, shrugging it off after the Jazz took down the New Orleans Pelicans 129-118.
Mitchell’s teammates obviously weren’t pleased to hear about that — along with some additional criticism the Inside the NBA crew had for him, which may have sparked what O’Neal said — and they had a lot to say in response.
Here’s Mike Conley, via the Salt Lake Tribune:
“I’ve been a big fan of Don’s and seeing the way he’s grown over the last few seasons, even before I was here. His progression has been great, and I don’t know how you can make make a statement regarding his progress at such a young age,” said Mike Conley, who finished with 20 points, six assists and three steals. “He’s a guy that’s gotten better every year. He’s added things to his game. And he’ll continue to get better.”
And Rudy Gobert:
Rudy Gobert on the TNT crew and comments: "At the end of the day, whatever they want to call us, if we keep winning games, they will have to watch us anyway. Hopefully they have to watch us until July. And then they can call us whatever they want."
— Tony Jones (@Tjonesonthenba) January 22, 2021
Mitchell — again via the Tribune — once again had a great response:
“I’m here to to play basketball, and be the best teammate and the best player that I can be. [And if] they don’t like it, they don’t like it,” he said. “I’m not trying to make this about me — this is team basketball. At the end of the day, we’re winning, we’re doing good things, we just got to keep it up because you got Golden State coming in [Saturday] and we got to be ready for that.”
🎷 JAZZ WIN 7th STRAIGHT! 🎷@spidadmitchell goes for a season-high 36 in the @utahjazz W vs. New Orleans! #TakeNote pic.twitter.com/dgLNWYJ3y1
— NBA (@NBA) January 22, 2021
