Who can be prime Shaq in 1v1 pickup?

[inclinerator]

i can be prime shaq

[inclinerator]

Yeah I'd give the edge to LeBron 1v1 because of his court vision...

he'd easily pass the ball to himself off the backboard

[Prometheus]

Bigs who would (somewhat) stand a chance would be (some more than others obviously):

> Wilt - matches Shaq in size and athleticism, and he has the skill despite what some may say; he can do it on both "sides"
> younger Kareem - really tall and long, very athletic, lots of skill, can post-up, faceup and drive, has the skyhook; his best asset to stop Shaq would be height and length but Shaq would bully him down low, it's most likely one of those cases where no man would stop the other
> Hakeem - Dream did great against an younger Shaq, they never went h2h at their peak though.. peak Shaq was even a better monster, so he would most likely take it most of the time, Hakeem would win some times though
> peak Bob McAdoo - he was somewhat of a liability against big centers, Shaq would completely abuse him but it was hell to try and stop Mac from scoring, he was long with lots of athleticism, could shoot lights out even in players' mugs, could drive and post-up too
> peak Barkley - strong as a bull and big, despite his height he could post-up taller players, really athletic and could handle the ball, would be hard to stop if his shot was falling; wouldn't be able to do a damn thing to stop Shaq though... similar stuff can be said for Karl Malone
> D-Rob - athletic freak, about the same height, great scorer, great defensive player, clearly better shooter, can't see him winning though and he would shy in big moments
> peak Tom Chambers - tall, big, very athletic and mobile, could put it on the floor and drive, had a good outside game, also post-up; similar to Barkley, could give problems to Shaq while with the ball but wouldn't do be able to do anything while guarding Diesel
> Dirk - he was not as athletic as a Charles Barkley or a Tom Chamers but one of the GOAT shooters, really tall and he can handle the ball, was not even close to being a stiff, especially while younger; of course he's another one that wouldn't stand a chance on defense

For the rest, it has to be a quick half-court player that can shoot, with a good first-step, and who's great at handling the ball, plus of course the shot has to be falling. I'm thinking of dudes like Jordan, Maravich, Curry, AI, Isiah, young Kobe, David Thompson, pre-injury CP3, and a few others.

And with all that said, I would still pick prime Shaq over anybody.

This is just for kicks though because basketball is 5on5. Still Shaq had a top5 peak, regardless.

Charles Barkley. One on one. Against Shaquille O'Neal.

[oarabbus]

If no free throws and no two point shots, then Wilt and Yao are the only human beings to have ever lived that might win.

To have ever lived? I dunno about that.



That pic is scaled appropriately. Let me just say at least before he developed leg problems, Mr. 8' 11" 440lbs could... give Shaq some problems. Bother him a little bit.


I'm sure there are hundreds, of people over the course of human history that could quite literally bully the fvck out of Shaq and Wilt.

But seriously, can you imagine that behemoth (if he was in even decent shape) playing basketball?

[imdaman99]

To have ever lived? I dunno about that.



That pic is scaled appropriately. Let me just say at least before he developed leg problems, Mr. 8' 11" 440lbs could... give Shaq some problems. Bother him a little bit.


I'm sure there are hundreds, of people over the course of human history that could quite literally bully the fvck out of Shaq and Wilt.

But seriously, can you imagine that behemoth (if he was in even decent shape) playing basketball?

LOL you gotta be kidding me. Shaq would bowl him over. Just because someone is tall and meaty doesn't mean they can be nimble on their feet like Shaq was. Shaq was deceptively quick and his footwork was amazing. 8'11 guy is gonna be tripping on his own feet. Shaq would murder him 21-2

[CavaliersFTW]

To have ever lived? I dunno about that.



That pic is scaled appropriately. Let me just say at least before he developed leg problems, Mr. 8' 11" 440lbs could... give Shaq some problems. Bother him a little bit.


I'm sure there are hundreds, of people over the course of human history that could quite literally bully the fvck out of Shaq and Wilt.

But seriously, can you imagine that behemoth (if he was in even decent shape) playing basketball?

Coming from an amateur photographer and digital artist, those images are not to scale at all I'm afraid, the person who put those two images together seems to not have a tight handle on focal points and perspective. Wadlow was 8' 11" tall, Shaq was 7' 1" tall... A difference shy of two feet. That picture is scaled so badly it makes it look like Wadlow (the guy in the B/W pic) was 4+ feet taller than Shaq. That's what happens when people try to scale images that were taken with different cameras / focal lengths / distances. Plus, what the heck did they even use as a standard frame of reference? Something in both images should be identical size. The subjects should be standing on the same plane in relation to that identical scaled frame of reference. Most people who try to 'scale' stuff make egregious mistakes without realizing it, I see this hugely misleading stuff all the time in animal comparison scale charts, paleo illustrations, military vehicles and what have you.

[oarabbus]

LOL you gotta be kidding me. Shaq would bowl him over. Just because someone is tall and meaty doesn't mean they can be nimble on their feet like Shaq was. Shaq was deceptively quick and his footwork was amazing. 8'11 guy is gonna be tripping on his own feet. Shaq would murder him 21-2

How would a strong, 330lb guy bowl over a 440lb guy? You realize he could stand by the rim and block every shot without goaltending, he's got almost 2 feet on Shaq.

Would Bruce Lee "bowl over" KD?


Cavs, you're probably right about the scaling. Wadlow still has ~2ft on Shaq and was able to move around well a few years before his death.

[CavaliersFTW]

How would a strong, 330lb guy bowl over a 440lb guy? You realize he could stand by the rim and block every shot without goaltending, he's got almost 2 feet on Shaq.

Would Bruce Lee "bowl over" KD?


Cavs, you're probably right about the scaling. Wadlow still has ~2ft on Shaq and was able to move around well a few years before his death.

IIRC there is footage of him shooting hoops, ever seen it? Wonder if it's on an archive site

[sd3035]

I think the OP is forgetting that the defenders can poke the ball loose from Shaq, they don't have to bully him around or block his shot every time to be effective.

Shaq can't just park under the rim and wait for a pass in a game of one on one, he would have to dribble the ball in from behind the 3 point line.

I think there are a lot of players who would woop Shaq in one on one

[sd3035]

To have ever lived? I dunno about that.



That pic is scaled appropriately. Let me just say at least before he developed leg problems, Mr. 8' 11" 440lbs could... give Shaq some problems. Bother him a little bit.


I'm sure there are hundreds, of people over the course of human history that could quite literally bully the fvck out of Shaq and Wilt.

But seriously, can you imagine that behemoth (if he was in even decent shape) playing basketball?

Are you people forgetting that the ball has to be dribbled into the paint, unless these centers have tremendous handles, or can hit jumpshots, they would get smoked by people like Lebron, MJ, Kobe, Durant, in a one on one game

[oarabbus]

IIRC there is footage of him shooting hoops, ever seen it? Wonder if it's on an archive site

I have not. I had no idea that such footage even existed. Was he any good? lol. I'm sure he couldn't have been worse than some of the gigantic oafy guys that played during Shaq's time.

[SHAQisGOAT]

Charles Barkley. One on one. Against Shaquille O'Neal.

So? What's the problem? Ever saw prime Barkley?

Plus, I never said he would win, most of the times he wouldn't and he wouldn't be able to do anything while guarding Shaq, but he would've stood a chance. Chuck was very athletic, really mobile and quick for a guy his size, strong like hell, pretty big, ability to handle the ball and go anywhere he wants, could post-up much taller players, and what gives him the chance here imo is his ability to hit some outside shots (adding to the rest), not a major threat or close but he could shoot and keep a streak, extremely tough cover if the shot's falling, he could be hell for Shaq (or anyone) on offense, in a 1on1 game.

Oh and btw Shaq's probably my favorite player, all-time, so call it how you want it.

[LeGOAT]

Lebron

[oarabbus]

Are you people forgetting that the ball has to be dribbled into the paint, unless these centers have tremendous handles, or can hit jumpshots, they would get smoked by people like Lebron, MJ, Kobe, Durant, in a one on one game

Well in that case Hakeem beats Shaq in 1v1 pickup. Easily.

[SHAQisGOAT]

Are you people forgetting that the ball has to be dribbled into the paint, unless these centers have tremendous handles, or can hit jumpshots, they would get smoked by people like Lebron, MJ, Kobe, Durant, in a one on one game

Well they could just back down from the 3pt line if there's no back to the basket rule or 24 seconds shot-clock. No need for tremendous handles or ability to hit jumpshots, just back down and if the opponent reaches, either drive or spin to the basket.