In a flaming moment of open warfare that lit up social media, legendary NBA star Shaquille O'Neal made one thing clear. If Robert Griffin III takes another blow at Angel Reese, this won't just be a personal attack.
"Tell RGI III to tweet another monkey post about my girl Angel Reese, and I'mma punch you in your f##### face," Shaq said during a July 15, 2025, drop-in to Bailey Jackson's "Off The Record" podcast. It was a rare public flare-up from the usually cheerful big man, but the message was impossible to miss: Leave Angel Reese alone.
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The trouble arose from a July 10, 2025, post by RG3 on a X (the platform once known as Twitter) in which the former rookie sensation trafficked an altered NBA 2K26 video game cover featuring Reese in a racist depiction. While Griffin said he was criticizing the imagery for being racist, critics and Shaq weren't having it. Many people took it as RG3 not being the bigger man, and made things worse by dragging Reese into the mud with him once again.
Shaq, who has a strong LSU connection to Reese and has publicly supported her ascent, laid into RG3, not just for the post, but for a track record of gratuitous commentary.
"You got your job, you got your podcast, leave my Angel Reese alone," Shaq simply put it. "I'm calling her and she's listening if she don't answer, f###### stop it."
O'Neal also took issue with the media fanning a rivalry between Reese and Iowa basketball standout Caitlin Clark, believing the storyline is divisive and contrived.
"That's not real hate," Shaq said after @rgIII had suggested earlier in the broadcast that Reese "hates" Clark. "You already spoke on it. Let it go. So what? He hates her. So f###### what? I hate you for what you did to her now. Now what? Say something about me."
And he didn't stop there. Shaq also attacked RG3's livelihood and his credibility. "He's not that f###### good," Shaq cracked. "He's gonna be the podcast man, not the football man."
Angel Reese, for one, has refused to take the bait. She went on social media and called the claims "lies," accusing RG3 of clout chasing, and her mom publicly denied any alleged links RG3 suggested. And behind the scenes? Shaq's on the line, telling her to hold her head high.
"She ain't gonna respond cause I'm the one calling and saying, 'Baby, keep it class,'" Shaq said. "I don't care that you're doing your job, but leave that little girl alone for chrissake. Cause guess what? I'm her protector. Now pick on me."
In a world of internet beefs and viral feuds, this one cuts to the core, much more than celebrity drama, but a veteran athlete defending a young star's name and peace. And when Shaq says he's putting hands on someone, the world pays attention.
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