Shaquille O'Neal pinpoints major flaw behind James Harden’s clutch game failures: "I can see it in your eyes"

According to four-time NBA champion Shaquille O'Neal, a major reason for his success was his indifference toward the noise coming from the general public. He shared this on Friday's episode of "The Big Podcast" with musical artist Russ, the show's special guest.

According to O'Neal, he developed this mentality after seeing the movie "The Fan," which starred Robert DeNiro and Wesley Snipes. Once he stopped caring about criticism, Shaq said he found success not only in basketball, but in his other endeavors.

This prompted Russ to ask O'Neal if he could tell which players cared too much about criticism and how it affected their performance. O'Neal named LA Clippers star James Harden in his response.

"All the time, when you care, I can see it in your eyes," O'Neal said. "We had a couple of Game 7s and people didn't step up. If you have the I don't care attitude, you're going to take 30 shots, not f***ing eight, James Harden."

Shaquille O'Neal was referring to the Game 7 played between the LA Clippers and the Denver Nuggets on May 3. In that game, James Harden only attempted eight shots and made two, along with two free throws to finish with seven points. He logged 13 assists, but the Clippers lost the game 120-101.

Harden has played in seven Game 7s in his career, and twice, he's scored under ten points, including this year's showdown against the Nuggets. The other instance was in 2023 when the Philadelphia 76ers battled the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference semifinals.

In that contest, Harden scored nine points on 11 attempts, and the Sixers were eliminated from playoff contention. Interestingly, he has the same number of 30-point games in these do-or-die matchups.

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Shaquille O'Neal shares his tactic for facing a gorilla

A conversation that has dominated the internet as of late is men vs. a gorilla. According to Shaquille O'Neal, he already has the formula to succeed in this scenario.

In the same podcast episode, O'Neal shared his tactic if he faces a gorilla. This came after being asked by Adam Lefkoe how many O'Neals it would take to beat a gorilla.

"I already know what the gorilla's gonna do, so I'm f***ing leaving," O'Neal said. (1:01:18-1:01:23)

Russ responded by saying he'll likely need 60 Shaquille O'Neals in his prime, 20 of Ben Wallace and 20 Rasheed Wallaces to beat one gorilla.