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Shaquille O'Neal Gets Real About LeBron James, Stephen Curry

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By JH Kubicek | Last updated Apr 6, 2025 6:42 PM ET

As LeBron James and Stephen Curry reach the end of their illutrisu careers, both are considered all-time greats. Curry is generally considered a top-ten player ever and is certainly the best shooter of all-time, and has won four rings. James also boasts four rings and his longevity is unprecedented.

James is easily a better player all time than Curry, and the vast majority of fans have him and Michael Jordan as their greatest players ever.

Shaquille O'Neal won't disagree with that, but he does think Curry's legacy is more important than James'.

While James has done things on a court no one has ever seen before, Curry ushered in a new era of basketball that centers itself on the 3-point shot. Players like Damian Lillard and James Harden have tried to replicate it, but no one has found the same success as Curry.

For popularizing a new style of NBA basketball, O'Neal considers Curry more influential than James.

"Actually, I'm going to go with Steph Curry is more influential, because if you look at all basketball, it's being played like Golden State Warriors now," declared O'Neal on The Big Podcast.

When fans watch Curry, there is a bit of "what if." If I just practice my shot every day, I could play like him, right? Fans know they can never throw down a tomahawk dunk in traffic like James can, but fans seem to see a bit of themselves in Curry, even if that is far-fetched.

Between Magic and Bird, Jordan, Allen Iverson, and Curry, the "GOAT" debate and "most influential" do have some overlap, but influence is not always tied up in accolades.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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