Shaquille O’Neal has never been one to hold back when discussing the state of the modern NBA, and his latest comments on The Big Podcast with Shaq reflect strong feelings about the current direction of the game. He believes the league has adopted a softer style of play, one that lacks the physicality and competitiveness of past decades. The blame lies squarely on Stephen Curry and the Golden State Warriors, whose revolutionary focus on three-point shooting has created a league-wide obsession with perimeter play. He also warns that this one-dimensional approach could lead to a decline in fan interest.
“Steph Curry and those guys messed it up—Golden State back in the day shooting threes. But not every team is a three-point shooting team, so why does everybody have the same strategy? I think it makes the game boring,” said O’Neal.
He further added that the perceived softness of the league, driven by uniformity in playing style, could hurt viewership.“The game is soft, and I’ve said this before—it’s soft because everybody’s doing the same thing,” Shaq explained. “Viewership will continue to go down unless we switch things back up.”
The NBA’s Physical Evolution: From Contact to Open Space
The NBA has undergone a dramatic transformation over the past few decades, shifting from a sport defined by physicality and constant contact to one that prioritizes speed, open space, and long-range shooting. According to Shaquille O’Neal, this change has not only altered the style of play but also the way fans perceive the league.
Stephen Curry of Golden State Warriors
During the 1990s and early 2000s, the NBA was synonymous with gritty, physical basketball. Battles in the paint and one-on-one matchups were the norm, with players like Shaq and Michael Jordan regularly facing tough, physical defenders on every possession. In that era, referees allowed significantly more contact, and the concept of “soft fouls” was virtually nonexistent. Dominance in the post and aggressive drives to the rim were celebrated, while three-point shooting was used sparingly, reserved for strategic moments.
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Today’s game tells a different story. Modern basketball emphasizes perimeter movement, spacing, and three-point shooting—a shift largely driven by the revolution sparked by Stephen Curry and the Golden State Warriors. Entire teams have adopted this playstyle, prioritizing three-point attempts over physical drives to the basket. As a result, the emphasis on physicality has diminished, leading critics like O’Neal to label the game “too soft.”
For Fans, a Mixed Reaction to the Transition
For many fans, this transition has led to a loss of the intensity and physical drama that defined games during Shaq’s and Jordan’s eras. While the modern game is faster and more dynamic, some argue that it lacks the grit and stylistic diversity that made basketball so captivating in earlier decades.
