“It’s time to pull out that belt and woop a little a**” – Shaquille O’Neal once called out Damian Lillard over rap beef

The NBA offseason, filled with trades, signings, and roster changes, sometimes sparks unusual feuds. In 2019, a memorable one occurred between Damian Lillard and Shaquille O'Neal, not over basketball but due to their rap careers.

The roots of this rap feud can be traced back to September 2019 when Damian Lillard released his third studio album, "Big D.O.L.L.A." The album was met with critical acclaim and solidified Lillard's status as one of the few NBA players who could genuinely rap.

Damian Lillard made a guest appearance on an episode of the Joe Budden Podcast, where he was questioned about Shaq's earlier work as an MC in the late '90s.

“I think I rap better than Shaq,” Lillard said.

According to Dame D.O.L.L.A, O’Neal wasn’t being viewed as a real rapper.

“I think he was viewed as Shaq…People weren’t looking like, ‘this a real rapper.’ It was like, ‘That’s Shaq rapping.’”

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Shaquille O'Neal responds to Damian Lillard

So of course, the ever-entertaining O’Neal, who released the albums "Shaq Diesel" in 1993, "Shaq Fu: Da Return" in 1994, "You Can't Stop the Reign" in 1996, "Respect" in 1998 and "Shaquille O'Neal Presents His Superfriends, Vol. 1" in 2001, had something to say. And he chose the fitting avenue of a diss track to air it.

Twenty seconds into the track, O’Neal raps:

“It’s time to be disciplined. It’s time to pull out that belt and whoop a little a**.”

O’Neal’s diss also includes some scorching hot lines, including:

“Talking like you Bron, you ain't even Trevor Ariza. If you don't know who I am, check it, lil' sucker.”

“If you a f*****g' rapper Dame, then what the f**k am I? I'm accomplishments you can't reach, I'm too high Call me when you get a back-to-back-to-back-to-back Why would I wanna be a rapper? Rappers wanna be Shaq”

“Take your time to respond, there is no hurry. You'll never be Westbrook, never be Steph Curry.”

But Lillard didn’t back down and released a diss track, titled "Reign Reign Go Away," in response.

“Kobe won you those rings though,” Lillard said in the track.

“Said yourself that I'm a Tesla, no longer need diesel gas. Kinda like the Cavs ain't really need Diesel ass. And even in Miami, won that on the strength of Flash.”

But the beef would be quashed quickly. A month later, O’Neal would say that the back-and-forth between him and Damian Lillard was “just for fun.”

“The thing that went on for me and him was just for fun,” he said in an NBA on TNT event in Los Angeles. “I think he’s really, really good and he’s very talented. We had fun.”

Safe to say, the two legends seem to have buried the hatchet—for now.