Shaq has a Christmas gift for you, Candace Parker, and anyone else who thinks he can’t shoot

For the avid NBA fan, the stars shined brightest during the league’s Christmas Day slate of games, even if there were a few missing in action thanks to covid. Retired NBA stars even joined in on the action over the holiday weekend and got their shine on as well. Lakers legend and NBA on TNT analyst Shaquille O’Neal posted a video that has now gone viral of him shooting and draining what looks like about a 50–60-foot three-pointer.

Only Shaq, the person shooting the video, and the others in attendance know how many tries it actually took to sink this jumper. If I were a gambler, I’d feel fairly safe betting a large sum of money that this shot, unlike a Jay-Z verse, was not done in one take. The shot is respectable regardless of the form, but I guess we can give the big Shaqtus a pass since his game was never built on shooting. O’Neal shot 52.7% from the free-throw line during his NBA career, which spanned nearly two decades.

No one knows the reason for O’Neal filming himself shooting this absurdly long shot, but it may have something to do with WNBA star and TNT analyst Candace Parker. While filling in for Charles Barkley during the holiday week, Parker called out Shaq’s BS about his shooting ability. Then, of course, they took it to the court and allowed O’Neal to embarrass himself. After breaking down Lakers-Suns highlights O’Neal claimed he wouldn’t be 1 for 13 shooting wide open threes, and Parker seemed baffled by the comment.

True to his word, O’Neal did not go 1 for 13 from behind the arc on the TNT studio court. He only missed his first seven shots before making the eighth and quitting while ahead. Although the form is reminiscent, Shaq’s no Larry Legend. But it is pretty impressive to see the big man drain a deep shot like that even if it took eight attempts. Whether it’s Barkley or Parker, one of the two should be on set at all times with O’Neal just to keep his exaggerations in check.