Shaq believes Jordan and Curry had the least amount of help winning championships: "Mike and Steph are the same people" originally appeared on Basketball Network .
It's always going to be one of those conversations that sparks debate the moment it leaves someone's mouth. Who had the toughest road to a title? Who carried the biggest load when the games mattered most? And in a week where offseason trade buzz, podcast monologues and off-court whispers have already pushed things into overdrive, Shaquille O'Neal threw in his own perspective to keep the show running.
While on the "Off the Record" podcast, Shaq broke down which all-time greats had to carry the heaviest weight during their championship runs and it's safe to say his answer might come as a surprise to many.
"Who had the least amount of help? I would be a tie, Kobe had a lot of help and let me go on a record, I had a lot of help. So, release that," Shaquille began his detailed explanation on this topic.
That honesty was classic Shaq, self-aware but blunt. He acknowledged that he and Kobe Bryant balanced each other out, even admitted they made things easier for one another. But then came the real punch.
"Mike and Steph are the same people. Both bad boys, but they got another bad dude next to you. Klay was whew! It's a tie between those two. Mike had to carry a lot, but Pippen was a bad boy. Steph had to carry a lot but Draymond (Green) and Klay, them some bad boys, so it's tie. Kobe didn't have to do much, because I was there, and I didn't have to do much, because he was there… We equaled each other out," the legendary big man added.
On the surface, it sounds like high praise. Putting Stephen Curry and Michael Jordan in the same breath isn't something O'Neal does lightly. The way he framed it, Steph and Mike had another "bad dude" next to them, but still shouldered most of the responsibility, is a nod to how dominant both were in their respective runs.
Still, it's hard to overlook a few things. One, there was no mention of LeBron James , a player who's dragged some of the most underwhelming supporting casts to the NBA Finals — not once, not twice, but year after year. Sure, someone might say yeah, but he had all that help with the Miami Heat , but they only managed to win two... And that's perfectly fine as well.
And two, if we're going to talk about Steph, how does Kevin Durant not enter that equation? For two of those four titles, KD was not just along for the ride. He was arguably the guy in the biggest moments, and his two Finals MVPs while on the same team as Chef only go to show it.
Yet somehow, Shaq kept it strictly to the original core, leaving out a chunk of important context when we're comparing who really had the least help.
Shaq's framing probably says more about how he values hierarchy than it does actual roster makeup. In his eyes, when two guys like him and Kobe shared the spotlight, it canceled things out. But when you're the No. 1 guy and the rest of the help is solid but not overwhelming, it speaks to how much you had to carry.
And in that sense, yes, both Steph and MJ had that rare mix of stardom and burden. Neither had too much of a safety net of a second MVP or a modern-day superteam (at least by Shaq's definition). The offense flowed through them and the two, as O'Neal called them, bad boys, carried the load for the most part.
But ignoring Durant in Golden State or leaving out LeBron entirely? That's where the debate really begins. Because, as much as Shaq loves the barbershop talk, it's hard to have a whole conversation about carrying a team without including the guy who's done it with everything from Donyell Marshall to Daniel Gibson (no offense to anyone) to Anthony Davis and Dwyane Wade .
Who knows, maybe this will be the new GOAT debate, not who was the best, but who carried the most when it mattered and every now and again someone will come out with the fresh perspective on the matter.
This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Jul 17, 2025, where it first appeared.
