Dybantsa trolls Shaquille O’Neal: Shaq’s response goes viral

AJ Dybantsa has only just arrived in the NBA, but he doesn’t seem intimidated by anyone – not even Shaquille O’Neal. The No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 NBA Draft named the legendary Lakers center as the player he would most like to posterize.

The comment drew plenty of laughs and set the stage for another classic Shaq moment.

Shaquille O’Neal’s response

During an interview with Sports Illustrated, Shaq was shown the clip in which Dybantsa said he wanted to dunk on him. The Hall of Fame center’s first reaction was to pretend he didn’t even know who the rookie was.

Then came the joke that quickly spread across social media.

Oh, he’s an NBA player? He’d better call his doctor, because I’d knock him out

Shaquille O’Neal

It was clearly a tongue-in-cheek response, especially for anyone familiar with O’Neal’s personality. The funniest part? When Dybantsa originally made the comment, Shaq was standing right next to him.

At the time, he simply smiled and fired back with another playful response.

No. In 19 years, I only got dunked on three times

Shaquille O’Neal

In the end, it was less of a threat and more of another classic Shaquille O’Neal exchange that left fans smiling.