Shaquille O'Neal made sure Charles Barkley — and the entire NBA-loving universe — understood that money talks. That's because O'Neal flashed his money, presumably won from Barkley, after the two supposedly bet on if the Miami Heat would beat the Boston Celtics in Game 2 of their first-round playoff series.
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Well, guess what? The Heat did indeed upset the favored Celtics. Shaq revealed his winning on the award-winning TNT pre- and postgame show Inside The NBA.
USA Today set the scene:
"During a segment on Inside the NBA, the four-time champion predicted that Miami would beat Boston by exactly 10 points. His co-host, Charles Barkley, thought that was so ridiculous that he was more than willing to bet against it.
"Even though the short-handed Heat played without Jimmy Butler (due to an injury) in the second game of the opening round in this Eastern Conference matchup, O'Neal somehow managed to get this one exactly right."
Miami went on to win the game by exactly 10 points — as O'Neal insisted they would.
Before the Heat-Celtics game, Shaq said Miami would win by 10.
Barkley said let’s bet on it.
Shaq doubled the bet at halftime.
Cut to Shaq with wads of hundreds.
This is why Inside the NBA = 🐐 pic.twitter.com/0FStkzuIix
— Jimmy Traina (@JimmyTraina) April 25, 2024
"O'Neal celebrated by pulling out so many hundred dollar bills and pretending that it was a phone, jokingly on the line with Heat executive Pat Riley as well as other important folks associated with Miami's franchise," USA Today reported.
Oh, man. That's amazing.
These reasons and more are why Inside the NBA remains perhaps the best sports-related program on TV. Other networks and studio shows should take note. Keeping things fun can carry you a long way, and not everything has to be about "hot takes." Mix in a little variety and lots of personality, and you will get more bang for your buck. Just ask Shaq.
