The Big Lead

Shaquille O'Neal shockingly goes off at Zion Williamson after triple-double performance

By Aikansh Chaudhary

Mar 11, 2025; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; New Orleans Pelicans forward Zion Williamson (1) reacts after a dunk against the Los Angeles Clippers during the fourth quarter at Smoothie King Center. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Hinton-Imagn Images
Mar 11, 2025; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; New Orleans Pelicans forward Zion Williamson (1) reacts after a dunk against the Los Angeles Clippers during the fourth quarter at Smoothie King Center. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Hinton-Imagn Images / Matthew Hinton-Imagn Images
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There is no hiding the fact that Zion Williamson's NBA journey has been far from ideal. The former Duke star was the talk of the town when he was selected as the No. 1 overall pick in the 2019 NBA Draft.

Unfortunately, Williamson's career hasn't exactly gone to plan with the New Orleans Pelicans, with injuries holding back the athletic forward.

Even in the 2024-25 NBA season, Zion has played just 27 games, but everyone knows it, there's nothing new about it.

RELATED: Zion Williamson says New Orleans Pelicans are doing something against his wish

What's new is the fact that the 2x NBA All-Star is finally developing an all-around game, as he proved during the Pelicans' 127-120 win over the Los Angeles Clippers. Williamson finished the game with the second triple-double of his career.

Despite the amazing performance, NBA legend Shaquille O'Neal went off at the 24-year-old rather than praising him for his performance.

"Are you giving him props for that? I need more… Anybody can get 20 points now. That’s not good enough. I’m not impressed by that. If they’re in third or fourth place and you got those numbers, I’m impressed. You need to do more, Zion – I love you."

This is the perfect example of the discourse between the NBA media and the superstars of the league. Similar to many, O'Neal proved that the so-called old heads are simply exerting too much effort in hating the young stars rather than promoting them.

So much so that even 22 points, 10 rebounds, and 12 assists from Zion in just 33 minutes of playing time weren't enough to make Shaq happy.

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