Shaq - If the same applied to him as others in history

[tihsad]

I'm going to agree with 70s and migya on this with a bit of a caveat. Yes, Shaq was cat quick in the post during his prime, and as I think most agree one of the greatest pure physical athletes to ever play - but there is a difference not only in the rules of the time, but also the psychology of the league and its fans. Wilt (at least in the early/mid 60s) was often viewed as a "bully" because he was so much bigger and faster then the rest of the league, while Shaq was celebrated for it and enabled to use his strengths. Wilt was very, very conscious of public perception of him (much like Shaq) and played in a manner he most certainly wouldn't have 10-15 years later much less 25-30. This isn't intended to diminish Shaq, who I'm of the opinion was physically stronger at his peak, but don't think Wilt wouldn't have been crushing the post per the mid 90s and beyond.

[Heej]

I think Shaq might be a bit quicker with his moves overall, at least on offensive end. Some of that was caused by different rules and footwear, but you can give Shaq the edge.

The gap certainly isn't huge though, as we watch Wilt and Shaq without the ball they moved quite similar (with Wilt having a better motor and being faster).

Yea I think Wilt was more explosive personally. I just think Shaq had more coordination to execute nasty drop steps and whatnot. Like his functional athleticism I'd rate as higher than Wilt's as in he could maximize more of his body's force due to how coordinated he was, but I think Wilt was a better raw athlete and just produced more raw explosive power. I mean his leaping for his size was out of this world with how quick he got off the ground. It's like Amare Stoudemire-esque the way he came off the floor with barely any bend in his knee

Agree that Wilt played with different rules and had to play softer. But I think Shaq would've adapted better to that cuz the way he moved he could've been a skilled player if he wanted to invest his time into that. But he didn't care about that he just wanted to be mean and dominate people. People are just really underestimating Shaq's deceleration ability imo. The reason why he had that cat-like quality to him was that he was really good at controlling his body and stopping his momentum so he can go again

[70sFan]

I think Shaq might be a bit quicker with his moves overall, at least on offensive end. Some of that was caused by different rules and footwear, but you can give Shaq the edge.

The gap certainly isn't huge though, as we watch Wilt and Shaq without the ball they moved quite similar (with Wilt having a better motor and being faster).

Yea I think Wilt was more explosive personally. I just think Shaq had more coordination to execute nasty drop steps and whatnot. Like his functional athleticism I'd rate as higher than Wilt's as in he could maximize more of his body's force due to how coordinated he was, but I think Wilt was a better raw athlete and just produced more raw explosive power. I mean his leaping for his size was out of this world with how quick he got off the ground. It's like Amare Stoudemire-esque the way he came off the floor with barely any bend in his knee

Agree that Wilt played with different rules and had to play softer. But I think Shaq would've adapted better to that cuz the way he moved he could've been a skilled player if he wanted to invest his time into that. But he didn't care about that he just wanted to be mean and dominate people. People are just really underestimating Shaq's deceleration ability imo. The reason why he had that cat-like quality to him was that he was really good at controlling his body and stopping his momentum so he can go again

I agree, Shaq was very fluid for his size. Can't find anyone close to his size so coordinated. His footwork was also very underrated.

Shaq would be fine even with reduced physicality, but there is one question mark with that - his shooting touch. O'Neal had variety of finishes around the basket, but he wasn't particulary efficient with any of them. That's the only reason why I don't see him as the GOAT post scorer (Kareem rules). Wilt didn't have a great touch either, but at least his go to moves were fairly efficient (at least from my observations, which are limited to small sample of size).

Still, he would adjust, way too talented not to.