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There are recent reports claiming that Shaquille O'Neal criticized Victor Wembanyama's genetic skills for the NBA, which has gone viral.
However, these comments were taken out of context and debunked on closer inspection, highlighting the need for more accurate reporting in an era of social media misinformation.
According to Ballsack Sports, an account on X (formerly Twitter), Shaquille O'Neal said that having Victor Wembanyama in the league is not fair because of his unusually tall frame.
“I don’t think it’s fair for the game. Having one guy with a genetic advantage over others takes away from the skill aspect that makes the league great.”
However, there are no facts to back up this post by Ballsack Sports even if it's a verified account on X.
There are no sources or video interviews that the four-time NBA champion went on record to say the same about Victor Wembanyama.
It was just another parody NBA account that like makes fun of Shaq, who also had dominated the league with his hulking genetic build like Victor Wembanyama.
Shaquille O'Neal skeptical about Victor Wembanyama's built
While the Ballsack Sports post is debunked as fake news, Shaquille O'Neal went on record that he's not sold on Victor Wembanyama being as dominating as NBA fans expect.
"I'm a bit skeptical because of the good and bad things about highlights. When you put your highlights on, you always show the good parts. I want to see this kid play a full game," said Shaq in a report by Sportscasting.com.
With Shaq saying this as a player who once dominated the league, he emphasized the need to see more of Wembanyama before judging his trajectory.
"He's not very big… he's tall, but he's building up a lot of muscles, not that strong. He can shoot, he can dribble, he can do all that. But I'm only seeing highlights of him dunking the ball and shoot jumpers. I haven't really seen a lot of post-moves. We haven't seen a lot of that stuff."
Those doubts by Shaquille O'Neal are set to be answered soon as the San Antonio Spurs are to debut Victor Wembanyama on Wednesday, Oct. 26, when they host the Dallas Mavericks.
