Shaquille OâNeal and Kobe Bryant dominated the NBA nearly at will during their tenure together. They made it to the NBA Finals four times, winning three rings and putting together some of the most memorable performances of all time.
Needless to say, they set the bar for modern basketball duos, just like Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen did before them; so itâs only natural for people to compare them with todayâs players.
Thatâs why some Sixers fanshave gone as far as to say that Joel Embiid and James Harden isthe new version of Shaq and Kobe. Unsurprisingly, the Big Diesel isnât exactly a fan of that comparison.
NBA News: Shaq Says People Need To Stop Comparing Harden-Embiid To Shaq-Kobe
âWe won three out of four⊠No. No. Hell, no,â Shaq sentenced, per Essentially Sports.âNot after one year. Me and Kobe had eight years of damage together. No, not even close. Stop it. Listen, NO, H NO, and F NO.â
Embiid Also Thinks Theyâre A Different Duo
When asked about it, Joel Embiid had quite a similar answer. For starters, not only are they just getting started but also, itâs not like theyâre similar players to Kobe and Shaq by any means:
âIâm Joel Embiid. I donât play the way Shaq did, you know, dominant in other ways. Iâm not physically dominant like he was,â Embiid explained. âYou know, he was a freakin monster when he played⊠obviously Hall of Famer and one of the best ever. But Iâm Joel Embiid⊠I dominate in other ways on the basketball floor as far as doing everything. James does the same thing as far as being a scorer and a playmaker.â
The Sixers have a chance to do something special here. But itâs not like Harden is getting any younger, and itâs not like theyâll dominate the league for 8 years. At the end of the day, thereâs no need to compare.
