Kevin Durant just couldn’t help himself.
The new Phoenix Suns forward trolled Shaquille O’Neal after the NBA legend called Rui Hachimura by the wrong name during an apology to the Lakers forward.
During Thursday’s episode of his “The Big Podcast,” O’Neal apologized to Hachimura for saying he didn’t know who the 25-year-old Gonzaga product was when the Lakers acquired Hachimura in a trade with the Wizards in January.
“Let me apologize to Rudy Hachimura,” O’Neal said [at the 28:40 mark]. “I didn’t know who he was because I never watch the Bullets play, but he’s a fine role-player. … He’s giving me Rick Fox vibes. Tough, pretty good defender. … So Rudy Hachimura, I apologize I didn’t know who you were, I know you are now and I wish you well, and you’re doing great.”
On Friday, Durant entered the conversation, writing, “Rui*” with an asterisk sign in a quote-tweet that included O’Neal’s apology.
Lakers forward Rui Hachimura dribbles the ball during a game against the Bucks on Feb. 9, 2023 at Crypto.Com Arena in Los Angeles, California. NBAE via Getty ImagesLas Vegas Aces forward and O’Neal’s NBA on TNT co-host, Candace Parker, who was a guest on “The Big Podcast,” appeared confused when he called Rui by the wrong name.
“Wait, say his name?” Parker asked.
When he called him “Rudy” again, O’Neal’s co-host Nischell Turner chimed in: “It’s Rui, not Rudy.”
Parker added, “That’s why I wanted him to say it again because I couldn’t tell tell if he was saying ‘Rui’ or ‘Rudy.'”
Shaquille O’Neal on his “The Big Podcast” on Feb. 16, 2023. YouTubeIt’s unclear if O’Neal was joking, as he called the Wizards by their former name. The Washington Bullets changed their name to the Wizards in 1997, which was O’Neal’s sixth year in the league.
As for Durant? The former Nets star and O’Neal seem to have some sort of tension.
After the Hachimura trade in late January, Durant responded to a headline about O’Neal’s aforementioned comment.
At the time, O’Neal said on “Inside the NBA”: “If you ain’t a top-10 player, I don’t know who you are,” adding that he would’ve preferred a trade for Wizards All-Star guard Bradley Beal.
Kevin Durant of the Phoenix Suns walks off the court following a game against the Kings at Footprint Center on Feb. 14, 2023 in Phoenix, Arizona. Getty Images“Shaquille doesn’t know ball?” Durant tweeted, which drew a fiery reply from O’Neal.
“i don’t kno ball, but i kno how to brush my hair, or decide to cut it when i was going bald. love always THE BUS DRIVER,” O’Neal wrote under a video of Durant that was tweeted by his company, Boardroom.
Durant responded to O’Neal, writing, “Damn, I got cooked for asking a simple question.”
(L-R) Suns owner Mat Ishbia, Kevin Durant and general manager James Jones at Durant’s introductory press conference at Footprint Center on Feb. 16, 2023 in Phoenix, Arizona. Getty ImagesO’Neal’s “bus driver” comment alluded to the nickname Charles Barkley coined for Durant during the 2022 playoffs when the Durant and the Nets got swept by the Celtics in their first-round playoff series.
The Nets traded Durant to the Suns just before the NBA trade deadline on Feb. 9. The 13-time All-Star requested a trade to Phoenix after Brooklyn traded Kyrie Irving to the Mavericks on Feb. 5.
