Things got a little bit awkward for Shaquille O’Neal during his recent appearance on Angel Reese’s podcast.
The NBA legend, who is a friend and mentor to the budding WNBA star, made several comments that had social media in an uproar about how Reese and the league could generate even more money and interest.
During an interview on Reese’s podcast, Unapologetically Angel, posted to YouTube on Sunday night, O’Neal brought up an outfit Reese wore on a TV show and said she could make more money if she wore it on the court.
“Bro, imagine you in those little ass shorts you had on at the ‘Wild ‘n Out’ show, dunking. You know how many T-shirts you gonna sell, you trippin. What? What? Those same little ass shorts,” O’Neal suggested to Reese, referencing a grey long-sleeve top with very short grey shorts she wore during an appearance on Nick Cannon Presents: Wild ‘n Out.
Shaq’s suggestion prompted an immediate response from Reese, who raised her voice and said that she’s “not imagining anything!”
“The same little shorts you had on at Wild ‘n Out … I’m just saying,” he repeated.
Reese then shut down the conversation by speaking over him “OK, alright, alright, alright” to stop the hall of famer from continuing.
O’Neal also suggested that the league lower the rims so that the players could dunk more often.
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“Bro, first of all, I like how y’all are starting to get into fashion,” Shaq said. “Bro, a pretty girl dunking on the rim? I’m watching that all day.”
Reese pushed back, saying she didn’t believe women dunking would make much of a difference and hates “when men say that.”
“I feel like it still wouldn’t be good enough. It’s never good enough,” Reese said. “People always disrespect women regardless. They are always going to not give us the same value as a man. So, I don’t think that.”
Reese launched her podcast last month and has stayed in the public eye after suffering a season-ending wrist injury.
The Chicago Sky rookie was a finalist for the WNBA rookie of the year award, but lost to rival Caitlin Clark. Reese has spoken out about Clark’s fans, alleging that they had sent her death threats and made explicit AI images of her and sent them to her family.
Unapologetically Angel has stirred controversy as well. In a previous episode, Reese interviewed Kayla Nicole, the ex-girlfriend of Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce.
The interview drew a flurry of criticism, particularly from fans of Taylor Swift, Kelce’s new girlfriend.
Reese has also revealed that her salary from the Chicago Sky isn’t enough to cover rent for her apartment in the Windy City.
Chicago is one of America’s most expensive cities to live in and Reese revealed in an Instagram Live that her rookie-year salary of US$73,439 was far less than what she is paying to live there.
Reese says her rent is $8,000 per month, which would add up to $96,000 per year.
“Hating pays my bills, baby. I just hope you know the WNBA don’t pay my bills at all. I don’t even think that pays one of my bills,” Reese said on Instagram. “Literally, I’m trying to think of my rent for where I stay at. I’m gonna do the math real quick. I don’t even know my salary.”
“Yo, I’m living beyond my means! No, my rent is more than that. It’s $8,000. I’m living beyond my means.”