Jun 5, 2022; San Francisco, California, USA; NBA analyst and former player Shaquille O'Neal speaks before the game between the Golden State Warriors and the Boston Celtics during game two of the 2022 NBA Finals at Chase Center. Cary Edmondson-USA TODAY Sports

Shaquille O'Neal's latest theory is literally planet-altering

By Eric Smithling | Last updated Nov 17, 2022 9:41 AM ET

Tired: The Earth is flat.

Wired: The Earth has two moons.

NBA-turned-financial -and-astronomical guru Shaquille O'Neal spent time on the last edition of "Inside the NBA" trying to convince Ernie Johnson, Kenny Johnson and Charles Barkley that the Earth has, in fact, two moons.

Forget gas math...@SHAQ has a new theory pic.twitter.com/o2ziV7MPkP
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) November 16, 2022

Per Uproxx, Shaq said, "the other day I was riding -- past Auburn, as a matter of fact -- and the moon was on the left. And I keep going straight, didn't make no turns, and about 20 minutes later, the moon was behind me."

Barkley was having none of it. "It's 'cause it was movin', fool," he chimed in.

As wild as O'Neal's claims are, NASA actually posted a video in 2011 titled "Did Earth Have Two Moons?" (The answer: maybe, but it's gone now.)

In 2016, NASA released a statement stating, "a small asteroid has been discovered in an orbit around the sun that keeps it as a constant companion of Earth, and it will remain so for centuries to come."

The vastness of space is one of our greatest mysteries. The mystery that is O'Neal's mind is the greatest of all.

Eric Smithling

Eric Smithling is a writer based in New Orleans, LA, whose byline also appears on Athlon Sports. He has been with Yardbarker since September 2022, primarily covering the NFL and college football, but also the NBA, WNBA, men’s and women’s college basketball, NHL, tennis and golf. He holds a film studies degree from the University of New Orleans

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