- Kyle Lowry speaks out on trade rumors involving him and complaints from Miami Heat fans about his scoring
- Report: Heat began talking to Timberwolves about possible Kyle Lowry-D’Angelo Russell trade in December
- Shaquille O’Neal leaves Bam Adebayo off of his All-Star reserve ballot
- NBA executives believe the Miami Heat may not be willing to part with Caleb Martin for Cam Reddish
- Report: Miami Heat not willing to offer Caleb Martin to Phoenix Suns for Jae Crowder
- Report: Miami Heat interested in adding help at guard
- Report: Heat, Suns, Mavericks and Clippers interested in D’Angelo Russell
- Bam Adebayo slams All-Star voting: ‘There are guys that shouldn’t even be on that list’
- Pat Riley says he still roots for LeBron James
- Report: Miami Heat expected to show ‘some interest’ in Josh Hart
Udonis Haslem Shares Insane Story of When He Got in Middle of Shaq-Pat Riley Confrontation
- Updated: April 19, 2019
The imposing physical presence of former Miami Heat center Shaquille O’Neal made him tough to handle, especially when the big man got mad. Current Heat forward Udonis Haslem once got a firsthand look at O’Neal’s anger when it was being directed at then-Heat head coach Pat Riley.
Haslem shared his anecdote on the “Knuckleheads” podcast that’s a part of The Players’ Tribune platform.
[xyz-ihs snippet=”HN-Responsive-MOA”]
.@ThisIsUD never had a man push him like he was a little boy. And then he met Shaq.
?: https://t.co/ZyWXxhSVbO pic.twitter.com/LJFAEnBVDT
— The Players' Tribune (@PlayersTribune) April 19, 2019
“With Shaq, one funny story with him is when him and Riles (Riley) got into it,” said Haslem.
After one co-host clarified to the audience that it was Riley, Haslem continued:
“There’s just a lot of talking back and forth, and nobody wasn’t backing down, and me being a stand-up guy I am, I just stepped in the middle. I was like, ‘Come on big fella, man. You just go ahead, big fella. It ain’t worth it, It ain’t worth it.’ Man, I ain’t ever had a man push me like I was a little boy.”
Haslem imitated the push that he received from O’Neal as well as the angry giant’s blunt reply regarding what he might do to Riley.
“‘Nah, I ain’t gonna hit ’em. F— that,'” Haslem quoted O’Neal as saying before adding to the hosts. “Bro, I flew about five feet and at that point I said, ‘Man, I ain’t going back. That ain’t my fight. I’m outta here. You ain’t gonna be pushing on me like that big fella and it was too easy for you to push on me like that. I didn’t like that.’ Man pushed me out of the way like a little boy. Can you imagine what he would have did to Pat.”
O’Neal and Riley eventually cleared the air over their dispute and together with Dwyane Wade were part of the Heat’s first-ever NBA title in 2006. Yet O’Neal’s sheer size of 7-foot-1, 325 pounds would have been no match for the 6-foot-4 Riley, who was also 27 years older.
Haslem is currently debating the pros and cons of returning for what would be his 17th NBA campaign. All of the Miami native’s seasons have been spent wearing a Heat uniform, with the veteran looking for a farewell tour of his own after being witness to the adulation that teammate Dwyane Wade received in his last year.
[xyz-ihs snippet=”Hn-Responsive-EOA”]
You must be logged in to post a comment Login