Leave it to Shaquille O’Neal to show up late to “Inside the NBA’s” pre-game show for the play-in tournament.

At the start of Tuesday’s TNT show, Ernie Johnson introduced his co-hosts, like any other episode – but the big man was missing.

“From Studio J in Atlanta,” Johnson began before introducing Charles Barkley and Kenny Smith, who he mentioned it was “great to have back” following time off.

“And it’ll be great to have Shaquille O’Neal whenever he gets to the studio,” Johnson added, signaling to the empty seat alongside him.

“What kind of dummy misses the first night of the playoffs?” Barkley shouted. Johnson corrected him that the Tuesday’s games were part of the NBA’s Play-In Tournament ahead of the playoffs, which officially begin May 22.

As the hosts roasted O’Neal, Smith took out his phone and FaceTimed the Lakers legend to discover his whereabouts — but he didn’t pick up.

When O’Neal finally arrived at work, he quietly walked on set while Johnson was breaking down the play-in format.

“You can’t sneak in at 7’2″,” Smith joked.

Barkley added, “You can’t be that big and sneak,” to which O’Neal explained, “I apologize, I read my schedule wrong.”

Johnson continued to bust the big man, joking, “That’s what happens when you have a Hall of Fame induction ceremony over the weekend, you can show up whenever you want.”

O’Neal attended the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame induction ceremony at Mohegan Sun in Connecticut on Saturday, where his good friend and former Lakers teammate Kobe Bryant was posthumously inducted.

Later on in the show, O’Neal continued his usual banter with Barkley. During a discussion about the Celtics 118-110 win over the Wizards on Tuesday night to clinch the No. 7 seed in the east, Barkley cracked a “yo-momma”-style joke, aimed at O’Neal’s grandmother.

“Hey man, let me tell you something,” O’Neal began as he pulled his glasses off his face. “There’s two mommas you don’t play with, my momma and my grandma. I’ll reach across this table and knock your face off right now.”

Johnson and Smith couldn’t control their laughter, especially when TNT producers showed O’Neal ripping off his glasses in slow motion.