Don’t mess with Shaquille O’Neal, and don’t mess with his Angel Reese! In a new interview, the former Los Angeles Lakers star rushed the Reese’s defense, slamming trolls for “bullying” the WNBA superstar online. And he didn’t stop there. Elsewhere during the interview, O’Neal said he wished he could take his defense of Reese even further by landing a clean one squarely in some of her haters’ faces.

Shaquille O’Neal Makes It Clear That He’s A Big Fan Of Angel Reese And The WNBA

O’Neal appeared on “The Rich Eisen Show” recently and opened up about the WNBA’s biggest stars, including Reese and the Washington Mystics’ rookie Lauren Betts.

During the show, O’Neal spoke about their love of the game, saying they are “having fun” and are “determined to do great things” in the league.

At another point, the NBA champion briefly spoke about internet trolls who use their likeness to spread hate for clicks and engagement.

O’Neal Says He Wishes He Could ‘Punch’ Reese’s Critics For ‘Bullying’ Her

“I wish I could punch some of these guys in the face that just pick on my Angel and pick on my Lauren, but I have to be professional,” O’Neal said about the trolls’ apparent attempts to garner engagement off of hate posts about the star athletes.

“It’s just a lot of nonsense, and just a lot of embarrassing, a lot of bullying sometimes. And guys bullying [other] guys is fine, but I can’t let you just bully females, just so you can get likes,” O’Neal said.

And he didn’t stop there. O’Neal slammed the “amateurs” who use an athlete’s off-night to get the media and internet to attack a single player.

“A lot of guys, when they get off air, they want to go to their page. So, what do they do to go to their page? They’ll take a hot topic and promote it on their page to get their followers up,” he said.

O’Neal Has Defended Angel Reese In The Past Against Internet Trolls

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This isn’t the first time that O’Neal has spoken up for Reese. According to a previous report from The Blast, O’Neal previously blasted former NFL player Robert Griffin III (RGIII) for posting a photo of Reese depicted as a monkey.

“Tweet another monkey post about my girl Angel Reese and I’m gonna punch you in your f-cking face,” O’Neal said in 2025.

He added, “It’s enough. I don’t usually do stuff like this, but stop it, bro. You got your job, you got your podcast. Leave my Angel Reese alone. I’m the one calling her and telling her not to respond. F-cking stop it. That’s the last time.”

O’Neal criticized RGIII for fanning the flame and allegedly sending more hate Reese’s way.

He also dismissed those with negative feelings toward Reese, who defeated Caitlin Clark in 2023 during the NCAA Championship, saying their beef is “not real hate.”

“If you look around at what’s going on in this real country, that’s hate,” he said before adding, “This is sports; I’m not supposed to like you.”

O’Neal Is Always Rooting For Angel Reese

O’Neal and Reese go way back. In fact, their relationship started when Reese rose to fame as one of the star players of LSU’s 2023-2024 rosters.

After the 6’3″ Maryland native was drafted by the Chicago Sky in 2024, O’Neal spoke with PEOPLE about their relationship.

“I am described as Angel’s understandable ear,” he said. “I know things that she went through, I know what she’s going through, I know what’s about to happen to her and I could give her advice.”

Reese Signed With Reebok Because Of O’Neal

Something else that makes their relationship so strong is that O’Neal made Reese the face of Reebok Basketball when she signed with the shoe giant in October 2023.

Now, the superstar has her own line of sneakers and clothing, with more on the way. In the past, she opened up about why she signed with the company and how O’Neal played a role in that.

“He spoke about me being able to bring Reebok back,” she said. “I already knew everything he and A.I. were able to do, and their swag. I love A.I.’s swag, what they were able to do while they were playing. But like me, being able to have my own creative control and being able to have my hands on everything was something that I really wanted to do, and I was like, ‘All right, let’s do it. Let’s talk.’ And everything went great.”

The Shaq Slams ‘Guys’ Who Are ‘Bullying’ Angel Reese For Popularity: ‘Embarrassing’ first appeared on The Blast