“He’s (Chet Holmgren) a great role player. He’s a Horace Grant or Toni Kukoc, not taking away. But he’s not a Big 3, stop it.” Stinging words from Shaquille O’Neal as he was not impressed after the Thunder lost game 1 of the NBA finals. Being a center and dominating both sides of the paint for years, the Lakers legend expects the same from others. But the 23-year-old failed to do so in Game 1, which led Shaq to produce his rant on the live broadcast.
“I did not expect this. I thought it should’ve been a blowout,” Shaq said on NBA TV, visibly stunned by OKC’s collapse. “Chet had a horrible game. Two for nine for six points. But listen, Indiana, they definitely stole one. And nobody expected this.” Holmgren’s stat line—6 points, 6 rebounds, 2-of-9 shooting—justified the response from the 4x NBA champion. But the course correction was immediate in game 2.
He was the game’s leading scorer with nine points on 4-of-5 shooting as Oklahoma City led by six points after one quarter. But his performance with 30 blocks and 25 shots from beyond the arc in the playoffs made him part of an elite list. 3 players before this season did it, Draymond Green, Rasheed Wallace, and Al Horford. Myles Turner and Chet Holmgren added their names to this. However, another thing of note is that the Thunder star is the youngest player in NBA history to do it.
Players with 25+ threes and over 30 blocks in a playoffs:
— Draymond Green
— Rasheed Wallace
— Al Horford
— Myles Turner (this year)
— Chet Holmgren (this year)
Chet is the youngest player in NBA history to do it. pic.twitter.com/SqiC1nHYb5
— StatMuse (@statmuse) June 9, 2025
This is a developing story…
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