For nearly 20 years, the tension between NBA legends Shaquille O’Neal and Dwight Howard has simmered, sometimes quietly, sometimes publicly. But now, the long-standing feud appears to have come to a peaceful end, and the story behind it is as unexpected.
In the latest episode of The Big Podcast with Shaq, O’Neal opened up about the moment that changed everything. He recalled an encounter at a bar shortly after Howard had his jersey retired.
“You surprised me at the bar. I’m at the bar, and he just got his jersey retired. I’m sitting there, and everybody thinks we were going to fu**** fight. My boy with me; he’s smoking. Dwight comes up with this big, swole, muscled dude, and they stand behind me,” Shaq said.
Shaq says he was ‘surprised’ Dwight Howard approached him at a bar in Orlando to squash their beef:
— Legion Hoops (@LegionHoops) April 25, 2025
“Everybody think we were going to f***ing fight… I turn, I see Dwight and I’m like aw sh**, we about to tear this motherf***er up.” 😭
(via @bigpodwithshaq, @playmaker) pic.twitter.com/GADEpO4Vdh
“I turn, I see Dwight, and I’m like, ‘we about to tear this mother****er up. He’s like, ‘Hey, big fella, can I talk to you?’ So we go in the back, and before he started talking,” Shaq added.
Shaquille O’Neal Asks Dwight Howard Why He Felt Disliked
During their conversation, Shaquille O’Neal asked Howard why he believed Shaq didn’t like him. Howard then shared a moment that had bothered him for years. He reflected on an episode of Inside the NBA, where Shaq appeared to mock him by throwing his cake on the ground.
Click on ‘Follow Us’ and get notified of the most viral NBA stories via Google! Follow Us
“During my career, it just felt like—just watching TNT—there was an episode where you picked up my cake and then just threw it on the ground. I was like, ‘Dang, is he really pissed off at me?’” Howard said.
It’s clear now that the once fiery feud between O’Neal and Howard has cooled. It wasn’t the first time Howard had reached out. Last year, he publicly extended an olive branch, calling on Shaq to put a full stop to the feud. And once again, it was Howard who initiated the closure and proved he was serious about moving forward.
